3. Will the Minister provide an update on the latest review of the Learner Travel (Wales) Measure? OQ60526

Diolch. I'm currently reviewing a recommendations report based on the recent internal analysis and evaluation exercise and engagement with young people.

The Measure does impose a duty on local authorities to make an assessment of the transport needs of learners, and the Government considers safety as part of those needs, and the guidance does suggest risk assessments of the walking routes where that's appropriate. The problem is that local authorities don't interpret that as a statutory requirement, and that is a major problem, particularly in rural areas where many children do have to walk to gathering points, very often long distances, but also along narrow roads, and, during the winter, of course, when it's dark. So, as part of that review that has happened, is that question of ensuring that risk assessments are done, including of the walking routes, being made a statutory requirement, not least because one of your predecessors, Edwina Hart, said that not doing that risk assessment would be a breach of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child?

Thank you. I do know that local authorities do take this very seriously, regardless of whether it’s a statutory responsibility or not. The approach that we’re trying to take here is to try and see the journey to school not simply as a stand-alone but as part of the wider way that we approach transport across our community. So, for example, we’re investing heavily in improvements to active travel routes for walking and cycling, we’re having enhancements through regular reviews and planning of future routes to make all pedestrians feel comfortable and safe to walk for short journeys. And most young people are making relatively short journeys to school.

There are of course issues there. I, some time ago now, went on a journey from his home village of Tumble to Maes y Gwendraeth school with some schoolchildren, carrying their bags and their guitar for them, on a fairly long walking trip along a path, and I must say my back was sore by the end of it. So, I’m very sympathetic to those people who are keen to have free bus travel when they’re very close to the threshold. The reality is that we simply do not have the money to put more money into school transport at a time when our whole bus network is under incredible pressure, and also, in franchising, we want to take again a whole-community approach to this. Over a quarter of school budgets are spent on the cost of running school buses. Those buses are then not available to the rest of the community for the rest of the day, and I think it makes far more sense for us, when we are looking at planning for franchising, that we look at the whole bus network for all people, including for school pupils, and we have a coherent network that runs for all passengers, rather than trying to silo it out. Now, that is part of the ongoing work that we’re doing as we prepare for the bus Bill, and we’ll be publishing a route-map towards franchising over the coming months.

We are close to a point where we can publish the learner travel Measure review, which has been a complex and long piece of work. And I think there's much that we can do there, even within the current system, and within the current funding, that can improve the school experience for young people. But I do want, rather than simply looking at school transport in isolation, to look at the broader problems we have about travel in Wales. 

Deputy Minister, it's been years now since the learner travel Measure review and recommendations were published and I have real concerns about the direction of travel that school transport is going in. And I reiterate the calls that Adam Price just made for risk assessments to be made about children going on buses, as well as the walk routes, particularly in rural areas. Whereas putting all children on public transport in urban areas might work and might suit, it won't suit all rural areas. And there simply aren't—. No. 1, there simply aren't enough buses for children to get on where you're seeing a wraparound where children are having to wait 45 minutes before school and after school to actually get on a bus, and that, of course, has safeguarding issues, waiting in the cold and the dark, as well as the other safeguarding issues attached to that. But it's essential that we get things in place by September. We cannot repeat the mess there was at the beginning of the last school year that made many parents and many children and young people very anxious because they didn't know how they were going to get to school. So, can you reassure this Senedd, today, that you will have things in place and you will actually address and bring the recommendations to the floor of the Senedd so we can debate it? Thank you. 

Well, I reject the characterisation of last September. In fact, a huge amount of work went on throughout last year, which I led, to make sure that the new arrangements that we had in place for the bus system did not adversely affect on school transport routes, and worked closely with the education Minister on making sure that was the case. And it went smoothly. 

In terms of the dangers of travelling on public transport in rural areas, I'm not sure there's a great deal of evidence for that. In fact, Monmouthshire County Council have a very effective system that they are running for school transport and we are keen to work with them to learn from that and from the rest of Wales.

And in terms of the broader point, then I'd be very keen to get a practical set of recommendations from Laura Anne Jones that are affordable within the austerity budgets that we have been handed down from her Government that meet the challenges that we face. Because, otherwise, this is simply hot air.