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November 7, 2024
Learners and Equal Education members picketing outside the Department of Education’s offices in Pietermaritzburg, demanding that the final provincial Learner Transport Policy document be released.

Learners and Equal Education members picketing outside the Department of Education’s offices in Pietermaritzburg, demanding that the final provincial Learner Transport Policy document be released.Nompendulo Ngubane, GroundUp

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By Sesona Ngqakamba

  • The age, extent of disability of a pupil attending a special or ordinary public school is outlined in the province’s transport policy.
  • The policy came into effect on 1 July after it was signed by the provincial department’s HOD.
  • The policy said the education department set all the rules and identified beneficiaries, while transport should implement. 

The KwaZulu-Natal education and transport departments have released a final and signed policy that outlines the criteria for transporting pupils from Grade R to 12, including those with disabilities in the province.

According to Equal Education (EE) and the Equal Education Law Centre (EELC), the policy is a victory. It would address the need for safe, reliable, and government subsidised scholar transport across the province.

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EE and EELC had been advocating for a change in the province’s draft scholar transport policy.

They believed that a solid provincial policy was necessary for better planning and proper implementation of the scholar transport programme.

Provincial education HOD Enoch Vusumuzi Nzama signed the policy on 1 July 2021 after the provincial cabinet approved it in June.

EE and EELC believed the draft policy in the province only catered for disabled pupils who attended special public schools and not those attending ordinary facilities.

They viewed this as not promoting an inclusive education approach in the province. The policy now catered for disabled pupils who attended ordinary schools.

The 24-page policy stated that various implementing departments would provide transport for pupils and their categories under the scholar transport programmes.

Pupils travelling a minimum distance of three kilometres to their nearest public school, qualified for the scholar transport. Those with disabilities also qualified for the programme.

The policy, however, noted that the nature and extent of pupils’ disabilities would be considered. Parents’ affordability, ages, and whether pupils were attending the nearest appropriate school would also be considered.

How beneficiaries attending public schools will be identified:

District directors are expected to scrutinise each list before making any decisions.

Pupils attending special public schools qualify for scholar transport if they have: 

 

  • Visual impairment
  • Hearing impairment
  • Physical impairment
  • Medical impairment
  • Intellectual disability

 

Special schools are expected to appoint a transport committee of at least five members, including the principal as a chairperson, one member of the academic staff, one from non-academic staff and at least two from the School Governing Body.

The committee would then consider the list of qualifying pupils and hand it over to the district director through the principal.

EE and EELC had also flagged that the province’s draft policy on scholar transport did not fully stipulate the roles of education and transport departments.

This resulted in contradictions, duplications and overlapping of responsibilities.

The organisations said the draft, for example, indicated that the KwaZulu-Natal education department was responsible for buying suitable vehicles for transporting pupils with disabilities, but it also gave that responsibility to transport.

They called for more explicit roles to be stipulated in the policy.

The revised policy stated that the education department was responsible for providing transportation to pupils. Transport would then assist in implementing the programme and ensure that, for example, the buses had drivers with valid licences.

It was the education department’s responsibility to identify all qualifying pupils in special and ordinary public schools.

The department was also tasked with safekeeping records and documents required by the transport department to implement the programme.

The transport department should also regulate, monitor and evaluate the scholar transport programme and procure vehicles according to specifications given by education for pupils with disabilities.

The transport department would facilitate all fuel payments, maintenance, and repairs of the vehicles used for the programme on behalf of education.

  According to the revised policy, contracted transport operators were allowed to use alternative vehicles in case of breakdowns, provided the replacements complied with safety standards.

EE and EELC said while the final policy had its shortcomings, they were optimistic that it was a way of providing access to government-subsided scholar transport for thousands of pupils qualifying in the province.

Source:News24

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