BOURNEMOUTH spent nearly £900,000 taking children to and from school by taxi during 2016/17.

The council commissions 140 taxis daily to transport 238 children to 62 educational establishments in line with its statutory responsibility under the Education Act 1996.

Last year it cost the council £864,000 to transport children below the age of eight more than two miles to school and those aged between eight and 16 to schools more than three miles from their homes.

Seventy-four per cent of the total spend was on children with special educational needs or disability.

It means that £224,640 was spent dropping off and collecting children to schools outside of their home catchments.

David Harrop, passenger transport manager for Bournemouth, said: “It is a statutory requirement of all local authorities to make transport arrangements for eligible children to facilitate attendance at school.

“As part of this service we transport some of the town’s most vulnerable students who would be unable to use public transport due to the nature of their special needs or physical difficulties, and many of the children we transport are too young to use public transport on their own. We have clear criteria for eligibility for transport, and we work hard with our providers to agree contracts that provide the best value for money for our residents. We have also implemented a number of schemes to reduce costs and enhance quality.”

Councillor Chris Wakefield, chairman of the Children’s Services Overview and Scrutiny Panel, said: “We have a number of young people that have a certain need to get from their home to the place of education and it is quite proper that the council assists in doing that by providing taxis. I am aware that the contracts are renegotiated on a regular basis to ensure that the local authority is not paying over the odds. We have to make sure that everyone has access to education regardless of ability or financial background.”

All taxis commissioned by the Borough of Poole are for use by children with special educational needs. The costs involved were not revealed.

A spokesman said: “The local authority has a duty to provide home to school transport for children with a statutory entitlement. Currently Borough of Poole has contracts for 56 taxis to provide regular assistance for 99 children at 29 different schools.”

Dorset County Council did not supply figures.