Home-to-School Transport: Children with SEND
Laura Kyrke-Smith Excerpts(3 weeks, 3 days ago)
Westminster HallRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Westminster Hall is an alternative Chamber for MPs to hold debates, named after the adjoining Westminster Hall.
Each debate is chaired by an MP from the Panel of Chairs, rather than the Speaker or Deputy Speaker. A Government Minister will give the final speech, and no votes may be called on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Laura Kyrke-Smith (Aylesbury) (Lab)
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Sir Mark.
I will highlight three suggestions that I have heard from my constituents in Aylesbury. First, information about home-to-school transport should be provided to parents in a timely and accurate way. I have heard about so many parents finally securing that school place and then falling at the final hurdle of not being given transport. Councils have to change that. Secondly, Buckinghamshire council is moving towards personal transport budgets, but £20 per day does not come close. I have heard about one case with an £84 return taxi fare to get the child to school. Councils need to allocate sufficient funding. Thirdly, councils must ensure that the transport that is provided is both safe and reliable. Unfortunately, I have heard of instances where that is not the case. Those transport providers need much tighter regulation. No one wants to send their child to school many miles away, but the broken SEND system necessitates it, and that has to change.
Special Educational Needs and Disabilities
Laura Kyrke-Smith Excerpts(2 months ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Urgent Questions are proposed each morning by backbench MPs, and up to two may be selected each day by the Speaker. Chosen Urgent Questions are announced 30 minutes before Parliament sits each day.
Each Urgent Question requires a Government Minister to give a response on the debate topic.
This information is provided by Parallel Parliament and does not comprise part of the offical record
Catherine McKinnell
I appreciate the hon. Gentleman’s comments, and I will always work cross-party with colleagues to achieve the best for all children in this country, but levelling the blame for the current situation at a Government only five months old cannot be accepted; the inheritance that we have taken on cannot be underestimated. We will continue to work on putting right what has been failing for the past 14 years, and the Department for Education is moving at pace on work to that end. We will make specific suggestions for legislative changes, and for any other necessary systemic changes, in due course.
Laura Kyrke-Smith (Aylesbury) (Lab)
Many concerned parents wrote to me at the start of term because they had finally been given a school place for their children with special educational needs but had no transport to get their child to and from school. Will the Minister reassure my constituents that we will take measures to ensure that every child with special educational needs has a reliable and safe means of getting to and from school?
Catherine McKinnell
Transport to school is the responsibility of the local authority, and families need to work with their local authorities to ensure that they are not disadvantaged in getting their children to school by transport. I appreciate that that is a challenge— our transport system, too, is in crisis after 14 years of Conservative Government—but we will continue to work across Government to ensure that all our public services meet the needs of families. In the interim, my hon. Friend’s constituents should work with the local authority to ensure that they get the transport they require for their children’s educational needs.