Janet Finch-Saunders, Assembly Member for Aberconwy, is calling on parents to raise the alarm when they have concerns over the safety of school transport arrangements, to help ensure Conwy County Borough Council can effectively monitor school buses and stops.

This follows from the accident last September in which Year 7 pupil at Ysgol Dyffryn Conwy was hit by a vehicle just after coming off the school bus.

Janet said:

“I was deeply saddened by this incident, and have asked Conwy County Borough Council how such a situation could have arisen in which a secondary school pupil had to be airlifted to hospital after being hit by a vehicle when crossing the road from the bus’s stopping point, one which had neither been determined nor risk assessed.

“Conwy County Borough Council have informed me that the driver of the bus had knowingly stopped in the wrong place to drop off the pupil, and that the actual determined and risk assessed stop was 50 yards down the road.

“Going forward, I welcome the fact that Conwy has written to all operators, and that the Standards Officer will focus more time on an increased number of spot checks.  However, I join with the local authority in asking parents, wherever possible, to inform the local authority or I about any concerns they have regarding the children’s school transport.

“Hopefully, through parents, local authority, bus operators, and I working together to improve safety, we can reduce the chances of more avoidable school transport related accidents occurring again”

ENDS