DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
POLICY
TRANSPORT FOR STUDENTS WITH SPECIAL NEEDS
Responsibility of: Student Support
Effective Date:
October 2014
Next Review Date: October 2017
Staff/Parents/Community/Department of
Target Audience:
Transport/Transport Service Providers
DET File: FILE2014/531
Doc:
EDOC2014/42738
VERSION NUMBER: 1.0
This policy and the associated guidelines are jointly owned by the Department of Education
and the Department of Transport.
1. This document should be read in conjunction with Transport for
Students with Special Needs guidelines.
2. POLICY
Under the Education Act 2012, parents and carers have a responsibility to ensure that their children
receive an education. The Act also makes provision of the Minister to ‘provide or arrange for the
transport of children to and from school and may pay the whole or any portion of the cost of
transport for any children to and from school’ in such a manner and to the extent that the Minister
sees fit.
The transport arrangements for students with special needs are administered by the Department of
Transport (DoT) and the Department of Education (DoE). The aim is to support eligible students who
are unable to access travel independently, and who may not otherwise be able to access education
without the provision of special needs transport to school.
Not all students with a disability require transport assistance; therefore not all students with a
disability will be eligible for assistance under this policy. Eligibility is assessed using three sets of
criteria based on; student needs, distance and travel time. These criteria are outlined in the
Transport for Students with Special Needs Guidelines.
The level of support provided is tailored to meet the assessed individual travel support needs of
students and may include:
 full or part time transport assistance
 additional supervision
 support and assistance in meeting health care or behavioural needs whilst travelling
 assistance for students to develop skills leading towards independent travel.
3. SCOPE
The policy supports eligible students who have a need for transport assistance in order to attend
school from Transition to Year 12.
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DoE and DoT Policy: Transport for Students with Special Needs
This policy does not allow transport services to be created for the sole purposes of transporting
students to and/or from respite care services, work placements, VET programs or other similar
activities
4. DEFINITIONS
Disability: in relation to a person, means:
a) total or partial loss of the person’s bodily or mental functions; or
b) total or partial loss of a part of the body; or
c) the presence in the body of organisms causing disease or illness; or
d) the presence in the body of organisms capable of causing disease or illness; or
e) the malfunction, malformation or disfigurement of a part of the person’s body; or
f)
a disorder or malfunction that results in the person learning differently from a person without
the disorder or malfunction; or
g) a disorder, illness or disease that affects a person’s thought processes, perception of reality,
emotions or judgment or that results in disturbed behaviour;
and includes a disability that:
h) presently exists; or
i)
previously existed but no longer exists; or
j)
may exist in the future; or
k) is imputed to a person.
Disability Standards for Education 2005, pg. 8
Parents/Carers: include people who care for a student, provide ongoing care
and assistance and have parental responsibility.
5. ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES (IF APPLICABLE)
Parents /Carers will:
 provide accurate and up to date information regarding the student at all times and notify the
school of any change in circumstances likely to affect the students’ transport arrangements

provide all additional equipment as required by law and to support the safe travel of the
student, including but not limited to car seats, booster seats, harnesses and wheelchairs
where appropriate

inform the transport provider at the earliest opportunity if the student will not be travelling due
to short term illness or other reasons. For extended periods of leave both the school and
transport provider need to be notified and a break in attendance for more than 5 days without
notification will result in cancellation of the service for the student.

ensure the student is suitably organised for school and on time for service pick-up

immediately advise the school of any safety concerns regarding the transport vehicle or
conduct of operators
Principals or school delegates will:
 provide relevant information to staff, parents/cares and other interested parties on the
Transport of Students with Special Needs policy and guidelines and service delivery
 assess student eligibility of students
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

inform parents/carers of decisions regarding the status of student transport requests once
eligibility has been assessed by all relevant departments
work in cooperation with the Department of Transport to ensure that the services provided
meet the needs of eligible students
provide suitable areas for buses to drop off and pick up students, ensuring these areas are
free of obstruction
Department of Education will:
 liaise with the Department of Transport to ensure the smooth running of services
 ensure that the travel support needs of students are appropriately assessed in accordance
with the eligibility criteria
 work with the Department of Transport to manage a ‘waitlist’ of students who have been
determined eligible
 facilitate biannual meetings with appropriate representatives from the Department of
Transport, school principals/delegates, transport service providers and support staff
Department of Transport will:
 assess the distance and time eligibility of students
 inform the Department of Education of eligible students’ transport outcomes
 liaise with transport service providers to arrange appropriate transport for the student
 contract and supervise the transport services
 liaise with transport service providers and the Department of Education to ensure and
effective service
Transport Service Provider will:
 determine if there is available space, and the most appropriate mode and route of travel when
applications are received
 advise the Department of Transport of the outcome, including the pick-up and drop-off details
 deliver the service in accordance with the route and schedule
 ensure that management and staff are familiar with the policy and guidelines and the
conditions of contract for the services and carry out all tasks in accordance to these
Drivers and transit carers will:
 be fully aware of the requirements of their roles as determined by the employer and carry out
duties accordingly
 maintain an open communication flow with parents/carers and the school by sharing
appropriate information in relation to students
 ensure all safety regulations and procedures are adhered to
Refer to Appendix 1 for more detail of roles and responsibilities.
6. RELATED POLICY, LEGISLATION AND DOCUMENTS




The NT Education Act
School Guidelines and Procedures – Students with Disabilities Policy
Disability Discrimination Act 1992: An Act relating to discrimination on the ground of disability.
Disability Standards for Education 2005: subordinate legislation under the Commonwealth
Disability Discrimination Act 1992. The Standards clarify and elaborate the legal obligations in
relation to education.
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Anti-Discrimination Act (NT)
www.worksafe.nt.gov.au
7. POLICY REVIEW
The Department of Education and the Department of Transport will review the policy and guidelines
for the Transport of Students with Special Needs in October 2017.
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Appendix 1
ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
BROAD DESCRIPTION
Understand that special needs transport is limited in its resources and whilst students may meet
eligibility criteria, transport may not be available and students may be referred to a waitlist.
Notify the school/transport provider immediately regarding changes to residential address or
other circumstances that may affect the student's current travel arrangements, including if the
service is no longer required.
PARENTS/CARERS
(All variations to transport arrangements will require a 'Change Request Form' to be completed
by the parent and are subject to a 7 day processing period to enable changes to be
implemented. Changes will be accommodated where possible, however limited resources and
time restraints may impact on the availability of service.)
Understand that no medication can be administered by transit carers or drivers or transported
by the service providers unless in a sealed container within a school bag.
Contact the transport provider if the scheduled service does not arrive within 15 minutes of the
nominated time.
Immediately notify the transport provider if the student is unwell and will not require transport in
the short-term due to illness.
Ensure the student’s personal hygiene/health meets acceptable community standards, e.gclean unsoiled clothes etc & not displaying symptoms of a contagious illness or disease as
outlined in the DoE Infectious Diseases – Exclusions From School Policy.
Escort students to/from vehicles (including students in wheelchairs) and assist with the correct
fitting of seatbelts and other restraints where appropriate and ensure a nominated responsible
person (18yrs+) is there at pick-up and drop off times or students will not be collected or will be
returned to school.
Work in partnership with the school to support students who have been identified as having the
potential to develop skills necessary to travel independently to and/or from school safely.
Immediately advise the school of any safety concerns regarding the transport vehicle or conduct
of operators.
Reimburse the transport provider for any damage to their vehicle for which the student is
responsible.
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Advise parents/carers that the school is the first point of contact for
transport arrangements.
PRINCIPALS/DELEGATES
Assess student eligibility for special needs transport annually or more
frequently if required.
Seek additional information from relevant parties as required in order to
ascertain or review eligibility for access to services.
Provide ongoing support and information relating to specific disabilities
and management plans to transit carers.
Communicate details of incidents which relate to students that may impact
on their travel arrangements.
Monitor and report work, health and safety issues related to the safe
travel of students.
Advise the Department of Transport when eligible students longer
require services.
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Ensure staff are provided with documents outlining clear
guildelines/requirements of their roles.
Ensure all employees have current Ochre Cards before being
employed to work with children.
TRANSPORT SERVICE PROVIDER
Ensure all staff are adequately trained in relevant
disabilities/behavoural conditions.
Ensure all vehicles are road worthy and well maintained.
Provide drivers with relevant telephone numbers for the people
who should be contacted in an emergency (i.e. the schools
served, School Support Services, Department of Transport and
parents/carers).
Develop and implement contingency plans for dealing with vehicle
failures and other emergencies.
Develop and implement procedures for the reporting of incidents
and recurrent problems to the school, such as difficulties at home
drops and student misbehaviour, students who are unable to be
dropped off to their parent / carer.
Ensure all vehicles used for providing transport services for special
needs students are equipped with suitable first aid kits and
adequate safety equipment.
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