Local Authority Home to School On-Line Transport Policies: Accessibility and Accuracy

Local Authority Home to School On-line Transport Policies: Accessibility and Accuracy

A study of almost half of all English local authority websites concerning the accuracy and accessibility of their information concerning the right of disabled children to free (local authority funded) home to school transport has found serious failings in the information provided. The Research was funded by the disabled children’s charity Cerebra and undertaken by students at the School of Law, Leeds University under the supervision of Professor Luke Clements and Sorcha McCormack.

Findings included:  Almost half of the sites were considered difficult to understand and/or to navigate (para 4.07);

 Almost half of the sites failed to include mention of one of the four statutory categories of eligible children (para 4.09);

 Four out of ten sites failed to provide information as to how an application could be made for supported school transport (para 4.13);  Almost four out of ten sites ‘failed make it clear that children who cannot reasonably be expected to walk to school because of their SEN, disability or mobility issues are entitled to transport’ (para 4.10);  In many sites reference was made to non-statutory (arguably unlawful) local criteria including (para 4.10):

The research recommendations include that the Secretary of State uses her ‘default powers’ to require councils to update and improve the information they provide to families.

At an expert symposium at the Law School on the 12th July concerning the findings of the research report reference was made to the prevalence of School Transport difficulties. Julia Meek of the HCT Group (a transport social enterprise) spoke of the opportunities open to local authorities to be innovative and person centred in their approach to commissioning services and referred to their 2016 report The Art of the possible in public procurement

For the full Cerebra / School of Law, Leeds University report (including an Executive Summary) click here

July 2017