North Yorkshire Council has been accused of a ‘cynical ploy’ after notifying parents they will not get free school transport for their child the afternoon before a Bank Holiday Weekend and ahead of the half-term school holiday.
The authority sent out decision notices to parents across the county on Friday (23rd May) by email advising of its decision on free home-to-school transport.
It comes just days after councillors voted to keep the controversial new policy, which bases eligibility on a family’s nearest school rather than their catchment school.
Parents whose chosen school was their catchment school, but not calculated to be their nearest school by the council, have taken to social media to confirm they have been told they will not get free transport.
Campaign group the School Transport Action Group (Stag), which has called for the policy to revert back to the old system, has criticised the decision to send out the emails on a Friday afternoon ahead of a Bank Holiday Weekend when no council staff will be on hand to answer queries.
A Stag spokesperson said:
“This adds insult to injury. The council offices will be shut until Tuesday, leaving anguished parents in the dark as to what they are supposed to do now.
“This seems a really cynical ploy by the council to deliver bad news and then not be on hand to help sort out the mess.
“We’re starting to wonder what North Yorkshire parents have done to deserve this type of treatment from their council.”
Ouseburn Green Party councillor Arnold Warneken also hit out at the timing of the emails.
He said:
“I think we need to be really, really careful about how we are treating these families and make sure we’re not doing things just because they are convenient for the council.
“Sometimes there’s no solution for everyone, but what you can do with everybody is give them due consideration.
"We’ve sent these emails out when there will be nobody at the council for three days and nobody at the schools to talk to for ten days because it’s half term.
"This seems to be being rushed through.”
It is understood that the council is sending out decision notices by post to families if they have not given an email address.
Cllr Warneken questioned the fairness of allocating paid bus passes on a first-come-first-served basis, but notifying parents of their decision on free transport at different times.
Parent Rachael Berry, who lives near Skipton, received an email advising that their daughter would not be eligible for free transport because Skipton Girls’ High School, where she has a place, is not their nearest school.
“It’s going to be a time of confusion for parents about what to do next.
“The bus passes are allocated on a first-come-first served basis, so we need to get the message out to check if you’ve got an email, and get your application in as soon as possible.”
The council has defended the policy change, saying the move will deliver savings of up to £4.2m a year at a time when it is facing severe financial constraints.
The council also claims the new policy is fairer as under the old system, free transport could be offered to some families for several different schools.
In response to the criticism, North Yorkshire Council’s corporate director for children and young people’s service, Stuart Carlton, said:
“We are aware that parents and carers have been waiting for information about the child’s eligibility for assistance with home to school travel. Therefore, we have tried to provide the information as quickly as possible.
“The letters sent today provide information not only about whether their child is eligible for assistance with home to school travel, but also about how and where they are able to obtain further information about school travel arrangements, including information about the appeals process.
“We have already received correspondence from parents about the letters and we will be responding to them as soon as possible.”
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