An Roinn Oideachais – Post-Primary School Transport Scheme
New Student (English / Irish) ………… Existing Student (English / Irish)
Transfer Details (English / Irish)
- To be eligible for transport under this scheme a pupil must:-
a) be enrolled for an approved course in a recognised secondary school, secondary top, vocational school, community college, comprehensive or community school;
b) be not less than 12 years of age of 1st January, of the school year;
c) have completed sixth standard in a national school or its equivalent;
d) live 3 miles or more from his/her appropriate post-primary education centre. This is measured by the shortest walking route. - Eligible pupils may be transported to the post-primary centre which caters for the catchment area in which they live. (Pupils availing themselves of such facilities are referred to as “Fully Eligible Pupils”).
- Where eligible pupils attend school at a centre other than the post-primary centre which caters for the catchment area in which they live, they may be allowed the concession of transport from the catchment boundary of the centre attended, provided there is room for them on a bus serving that centre. They are themselves, responsible for getting to the catchment boundary. (Basically eligible pupils availing themselves of such facilities are referred to as “Catchment Boundary Pupils”).
- Eligible pupils may avail themselves of school transport under his scheme only on payment of the appropriate term contribution. Where the parents or legal guardians of eligible pupils are medical card holders, they may be excused the contribution in respect of such children.
- Pupils who wish to obtain post-primary education entirely through Irish may be given transport to the nearest centre in which there is a secondary school, vocational school, community college, comprehensive or community school providing such education, if they live at least 3 miles from the centre.
- No special school bus service may be established unless there is a minimum of 7 eligible pupils within an area which can be reasonably and economically served by a bus route.
- Special school transport services are organised as a network of main routes serving each catchment area. Pupils living off a main route are expected to get, or be brought, to a convenient pick-up point on the main route. Spurs off the main route will not be operated for such pupils. As a rule, the routes will be planned so that no pupil will have more than 3 miles to travel to a pick-up point.
- The granting of facilities under the terms of this scheme will in each case be at the discretion for the Minister for Education who, having considered the circumstances of the case, will decide whether such facilities may be sanctioned.
- The fact that transport facilities have been held by pupils contrary to the terms of the scheme in no way confers on the recipients a continuing right to the facilities.
