School Transport / Home to School Journey
TAS has a wealth of expertise in the provision of home to school transport. All the members of our local authority team have considerable practical experience of commissioning, managing, organising and procuring school transport in major local authorities in Britain, including the introduction of the first “yellow bus” operation in Staffordshire.
A number of current government initiatives will impact on home to school transport provision in the future, including:
- continuing Government emphasis on liveability, sustainability and choice;
- the Every Child Matters agenda
- the Education & Inspections Bill (2006):
- Extended school day, including potential DDA implications;
- Post 16 concessionary fares;
- The Gershon recommendations for improving efficiency in the public/local authority sector, which requires savings of 2.5% each year from ‘back room’ services.
We are able to offer support right across this spectrum including:
- Reviews, benchmarking, performance management, integration and driver / passenger assistant training
- Developing and introducing an in-house operation,
- SEN transport (eligibility criteria, travel training and access audits)
- Transport Procurement options
We also have experience of broader issues relating to the “journey to school” and collaborative working such as School travel plans, Safer routes to school, Yellow Bus schemes and behaviour on school transport.
We have assisted the following local authorities to review their education transport provision:-
- Blackpool Borough Council,
- Leicestershire County Council,
- Leicester City Council,
- London Borough of Ealing,
- London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham,
- Luton Borough Council,
- Poole Borough Council,
- Salford Borough Council,
- Sefton Council,
- Telford & Wrekin Borough Council, and
- Thurrock Council
These reviews have all produced savings in excess of £100,000, recently including over £200k for the London Borough of Hammersmith & Fulham and £140k for Leicestershire where we recommended changes in the mix of vehicles utilised and repackaged peak and off-peak workings.