Clause 1 - School travel schemes
School Transport Bill
11:15 am
Mr Roger Casale (PPS (Team PPS), Foreign & Commonwealth Office; Wimbledon, Labour)
I shall speak to amendments Nos. 57, 58 and 60, tabled in my name and that of my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud and to amendment No. 53, which was tabled by the hon. Member for Fareham.
We are moving into one of the most difficult and sensitive areas of the Bill, and as we do so, part of me says, ''Quit while you're up.'' We addressed some of these issues in an earlier part of the debate. Some of the issues that we are trying to address through the amendments can be examined in relation to the enhanced consultation between service users and local authorities that we are going to try to bring about.
As I have said before, the transport of children with special educational needs involves not only vulnerable children, but vulnerable children who could be placed in a vulnerable situation. The situation described by the hon. Member for Fareham—a child with special educational needs being abused—is not at all far-fetched. In fact, there have been such cases, and they can happen again. That brings to mind awful nightmare scenarios. We must remember that the way things are at the moment, parents of children with special educational needs have to face those nightmares and uncertainties every day.
It is also important to point out that there is currently rather an open door for individuals who are intent on abusing children to infiltrate minicab firms and get themselves appointed as escorts for vulnerable children. As the Committee continues its work and as the Bill progresses through the House we have an opportunity to close that door, and we have a responsibility to do so.
On the face of it, the amendment looks attractive. However, we must ask ourselves whether we are trying to use a sledgehammer to crack a nut. I described a situation in my local authority area involving non-compliance with Criminal Records Bureau checks. The problem was not the nature of the checks, but the fact that they were not being done in the first place. We must ask ourselves whether making the system even more bureaucratic and enhancing the requirements covering Criminal Records Bureau checks will deal
with the problem. We need to consider the measure, but I want to see that door closed, and the problem resolved.
As I understand it, a lack of communication between service providers and service users is at the heart of the problem. That leads to a lack of confidence on the part of service users. We must examine how we can get to a situation where the existing legal requirements and the mechanisms for criminal records checks are properly enacted. That is in addition to thinking about how we can enhance that system. I await with great interest what emerges from the passage of the Bill on enhanced consultation on this issue. There is a serious problem and we must address it.
Inevitably when one raises a constituency issues, one draws the attention of national bodies. I am grateful to the Special Educational Consortium, which includes the National Autistic Society, Mencap, Scope, the Royal National Institute of the Blind and the Parents Autism Campaign for Education. I pay tribute to those organisations, which are the first port of call for many people who face such problems every day. We
must listen carefully to them. The Minister mentioned the work that they did in bringing forward amendments during the pre-legislative scrutiny. They have also helped my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud and me to devise the amendments that we have tabled.
Amendment No. 57 would ensure that schemes make provision for children with mobility difficulties who live within statutory walking distance of their school. Amendment No. 58 would ensure that a child with special educational needs and/or a disability would not incur any financial penalty as a consequence of that disability. A disabled child would not be charged for transport services that they needed to meet their additional needs, irrespective of whether that provision was detailed in the statement.
I will leave it to my hon. Friend the Member for Stroud to discuss those amendments further. I would like—
It being twenty-five minutes past Eleven o'clock, The Chairman adjourned the Committee without Question put, pursuant to the Standing Order.
Adjourned till this day at half-past Two o'clock.