Review into WA regional school bus services

This is the first review to be initiated since 1998-1999 and will focus on the Public Transport Authority's (PTA) Student Transport Assistance Policy Framework, which provides students living in remote or rural areas with transport assistance to attend school.

It also provides transport assistance to students with special needs who attend education support facilities.

Currently, to be eligible for a rural 'orange' school bus service, students must be enrolled at their nearest appropriate school, live more than 4.5km from their school, regularly use the school bus and reside outside a designated public transport area.

A separate part of the school bus program supports children attending education support facilities, predominantly inside the Perth metropolitan area.

The rural school bus network carries more than 25,000 students on 967 services across WA.

The Public Accounts Committee will provide details of the review once it has had the opportunity to consider it.

Transport Minister Rita Saffioti said after speaking on the issue in the WA Parliament, she was committed to referring the policy framework to a committee for review.

The Nationals WA MP for Roe and opposition spokesman for Education, Peter Rundle, said over the past four and a half years his electorate offices had received numerous complaints from parents, students and principals who were concerned by how the School Bus Services (SBS) operated.

He said the guidelines on where a bus stopped and who was an eligible student, were "outdated and unworkable".

"We have had issues from Salmon Gums and Munglinup in the south to Wagin and Darkan in the north of the electorate, and places in between," Mr Rundle said.

"Some of the decisions about where a bus stops and who is eligible are resulting in parents being forced to leave employment because they cannot access the bus route that will take their child to school."

Mr Rundle said he was "delighted" to have been seconded by Ms Saffioti onto the Public Accounts Committee which will be undertaking the review.

Those affected will be able to provide their own personal submissions through the review process as well as organisations like Bus WA.

"We will be putting out the terms of reference and I will be strongly recommending that we visit places like Darkan and Munglinup to get a sense of how these communities are affected," Mr Rundle said.

"The main thing we need is some common sense.

"In a place like Darkan, depending if you live 500 metres of either side of town in any three directions, you can be sent off by School Bus Services to either Boyup Brook District High School, Kojonup District High School, Wagin District High School or even Boddington.

"The current guidelines say the 'nearest appropriate school' and what that means at the moment is whatever is easiest for School Bus Services.

"But that might not be appropriate if, for example, you have a student with learning disabilities, so families would like to have the option of where their kids can go to school, within reason."

Issues concerning the SBS 'complimentary passenger' status of students will also be covered in the review.

Under the current guidelines, students who are not eligible for transport assistance may be allowed to travel as 'complimentary passengers' subject to the approval of the PTA, there being a seat available on the school bus, the student's bus stop being on an approved route and there being no additional cost to the PTA.

Mr Rundle said under the complimentary system, if you're normally a student that wouldn't be able to attend a certain school, but because the service goes past, they will give you complimentary status to go on that bus.

"But if the bus fills up then you get bumped out or if, for argument's sake, it's a small bus with only a few students on it and those students end up leaving that school and it's only the complimentary students left - then the SBS will no longer provide that service," he said.

Such is the case for Munglinup resident Kendall Wickstein, whose son will lose his complimentary spot on the Munglinup Primary School bus when the eligible student he catches the bus with attends high school next year.

Ms Wickstein's application for a permanent seat on the bus for her five-year-old son was rejected earlier this year, with the SBS guidelines determining that the family's nearest appropriate school was instead Jerdacuttup.

This is despite their residence only being 3km closer to Jerdacuttup Primary School.

"We live in Munglinup and we farm here so it's quite disappointing as it feels like we are being isolated from our own community," Ms Wickstein said.

Ms Wickstein said the alternative of having to spend two hours in the car each day so that her son was able to attend the primary school of their choice would most likely mean she would be unable to continue her work.

"It has a lot of flow-on impact, so I think it's important that the review committee sees how the SBS guidelines are affecting families, farming businesses and our communities as a whole," she said.

"I also have a two-year-old and we were expecting to be able to send our children to our local primary school for the next seven years.

"I hope they review the current guidelines around who is deemed to be an eligible student and who is deemed to be a complimentary student, because at the moment it just doesn't make much sense."

Ms Wickstein said she was hopeful the review would be a step in the right direction for rural families affected by the SBS guidelines.

Mr Rundle said the appropriateness of the existing conveyance allowances and school bus contracts would also be highlighted in the review.

"Parents currently get paid a conveyance allowance which is a long way off what normal public service rates are, so we need to have a look at that," he said.

"Regarding the school bus contracts, previously there were what were called 'evergreen' contracts, where local bus companies would have a 15-year contract and if they wanted to sell out of that they would sell the bus and the ongoing contract to the purchaser.

"Now that's become almost taken over by some corporate type contractors and the concern is that we're losing the local continuity for those contractors."

Mr Rundle said he had already received responses to the announcement of the inquiry from the Isolated Children Parents Association (ICPA) and the Western Australian Council of State School Organisations (WACSSO) which represents about 650 affiliated P & C bodies.

He encouraged those families impacted by the SBS guidelines to make a submission.