Fears over extra £40million school transport bill if children need socially-distanced travel arrangements in September

While most pupils are yet to return due to coronavirus restrictions, current rules have slashed the numbers sanctioned to travel together safely.

And even if education bosses at Durham County Council could find the cash needed to pay for travel in the next academic year, there is not thought to be enough capacity in the system to make it a reality.

“I’ve seen estimates that the school transport budgets could need to be four times their current rate,” said Liberal Democrat opposition councillor Mark Wilkes.

“I think we’re currently spending about £13million on home to school transport and there’s a risk here we need to find another £39million for home to school transport provision.

“We don’t have, potentially, the capacity within the transport system to actually operate this.

“How much do we have to reduce distancing in terms of the home to school transport system in order to get the vehicles we need and also to be able to afford to do this?”

Coun Wilkes was speaking at a meeting of the county council’s Children and Young People’s Overview and Scrutiny Committee, which was held by videolink and broadcast via YouTube.

John Pearce, the council’s corporate director of Children and Young People’s Service, told the panel Department for Education (DfE) advice was yet to be updated to reflect new social distancing guidelines.

He said: “The figures are based on two-metre social distancing and we have a protocol based on that which effectively reduces capacity to about a quarter on transport.

“If you take that to its logical conclusion, it would cost us four times as much and we would not have the capacity.

“What we don’t know yet is what impact the one-metre change will have or any guidance on school transport.”

He added: “Current guidance predates the change to social distancing, but it is a significant risk and even if funding was not an issue.

“£39million is a very significant issue, the capacity would not be there to provide the transport required and we have made that really clear.”

A message from the Editor:

Thank you for reading this story on our website. While I have your attention, I also have an important request to make of you.

In order for us to continue to provide high quality and trusted local news on this free-to-read site, I am asking you to also please purchase a copy of our newspaper.

Our journalists are highly trained and our content is independently regulated by IPSO to some of the most rigorous standards in the world. But being your eyes and ears comes at a price. So we need your support more than ever to buy our newspapers during this crisis.

With the coronavirus lockdown having a major impact on many of our local valued advertisers - and consequently the advertising that we receive - we are more reliant than ever on you helping us to provide you with news and information by buying a copy of our newspaper.

Thank you