Clause 53
6:00 pm
Sarah McCarthy-Fry (Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Schools and Learners), Department for Children, Schools and Families; Portsmouth North, Labour)
Clause 53 introduces new arrangements for sixth-form transport complaints. Local authorities will have a new power to amend their transport policy statements during the year, to take account of complaints or in response to direction from the Secretary of State. An updated statement will be published with a description of the change, ensuring that young people and their parents can always access up-to-date information about the transport and financial assessment arrangements available to them.
Sixth-form transport complaints will need to be considered locally, before being brought to the attention of the Secretary of State. Complaints addressed locally can be resolved more quickly and effectively, as that would take account of local context. Taken together, the measures will lead to more responsive sixth-form transport policies, as local authorities will have greater awareness of any problems that learners face in accessing provision and will have a power to amend their transport policy statements in response to complaints where necessary.
With regard to young people aged 19 to 24 with learning difficulties and disabilities, the changes in proposed new section 508G in clause 54 take us a step forward by ensuring that they will be given the information that they need about the transport provision available to them.
In relation to new clause 3, we agree that complaints are usually best addressed locally, as they can be resolved more quickly and effectively, but we need to reflect further on the points made by the hon. Member for Mid-Dorset and North Poole. I ask the hon. Lady not to press it to a vote, because I shall reflect further on that.
On new clause 4, I am sure that the hon. Lady would agree that we trust local authorities to manage and review their own transport arrangements for young people of sixth-form age. When there are complaints about transport arrangements, the changes made in the Bill will ensure that there are effective arrangements in place to resolve them. In cases where a local authority is acting unreasonably in how it is fulfilling its sixth-form transport duties or has failed to produce a transport policy statement, the Secretary of State already has the power to direct a local authority to review its policy or to produce a policy statement. Therefore, an additional power for the Secretary of State to direct a local authority to review its statement is unnecessary.
The measures in clause 53 have an important part to play in ensuring local accountability in the implementation of the transport duty. I hope that clause 53 can stand part of the Bill unamended.