Ballineen and Enniskeane pupils left without bus tickets

UP to 16 children in the villages of Ballineen and Enniskeane have been left without a space on the schoolbus to Bandon.

The students of the four Bandon schools have been told that because Dunmanway is their closest school, and all the seats to Bandon are taken, there are no more tickets available.

The parents are hoping Bus Éireann will reverse its decision.

Parent Nora Bradfield told The Southern Star that her daughter, who attends Coláiste na Toirbhirte in Bandon, was successful in getting a seat on the bus, but her son, who started in Hamilton High School today (Friday) did not get a ticket.

Because the Department of Education considers Dunmanway to be a closer school for the children, they are given ‘concessionary’ tickets, which means they will only get a seat when all the other seats are allocated. Nora says that there are at least another 14 or 15 children affected, who are either current or new students of one of the four Bandon schools.

‘Our national school is a feeder school for the Bandon schools, not Dunmanway, so this situation seems ridiculous,’ she said. There are two buses due to leave from the church car park in Ballineen every morning, from next Tuesday, a 33-seater and a 53-seater. Both are now full.

The local inspector advised her to ring the Dublin office where she was then told that the Department has no more money for any additional buses. Now she is hoping that her appeals to local politicians for help will bear some fruit before too much of the new school term has passed.

Full story in next week’s Southern Star.