Newry Armagh Sinn Féin Sinn Féin -- Building an Ireland of Equals

Councillor tells SELB that families have right to bus service

Published: 16 March, 2009

Sinn Féin Councillor Mary Doyle has called on the Southern Education and Library Board to reinstate the service that they had retracted from two families whose children attend St. Patrick's High Keady.

Cllr Doyle said,

"I was contacted last year by two families who had the facility of the local school bus removed from them, even though they availed of it for the past seven years. The Transport department had decided to remove the bus after it measured the distance from one house to the back and front doors of St Patrick's High School Keady, to the back door it was 2.9 miles and to the front door it was 3 miles."

"On Thursday the 12th March two mothers and myself walked the distance from their homes on the Corkley road to the back and front doors of St Patrick's High School, Keady and we came up with different measurements to that of the SELB."

"I am sure that the SELB would accept that the children would not only take the shortest route to school but the SAFEST route, so instead of crossing the road at the monument in Keady, a junction where four roads meet, we walked to the crossing and continued our journey to the school, we discovered that this added 216.5 metres to the journey and took the distance up to 3.08 miles to one house and 3.03 miles to the other house, effectively meaning that these children are in fact fully entitled to the school bus."

"While in St Patrick's school we spoke to the head master who informed us that in actual fact the back doors to the school are exits, the front door is the entrance as it has a safety mat at this location this was in the design of the school when it was built. The question I would ask the SELB is how, from a health and safety point of view can they stand over a decision to remove the school bus from children on the basis that they enter the back door, which is in fact an exit."

"This an absolutely absurd situation and I have written to the Transport manager of the SELB and also sent a letter to the Education Minister with all these details. I hope that they see sense in this matter and resolve it to the satisfaction of these parents and children as soon as possible."