Herefordshire school taxi driver suspended over concerns

Another Herefordshire taxi driver, speaking on condition of anonymity, said that among various concerns he had raised over the vehicles and drivers in use on home-to-school transport contracts let by the council, one in particular, providing transport to Westfield Special School in Leominster, involved a vehicle that was not only unlicensed as a taxi, but also uninsured and an MoT failure.

In response, a spokesperson for Herefordshire Council said the safety and well-being of children travelling on home-to-school transport “is our highest priority” and that it took “extremely seriously” any concerns raised about vehicles, drivers, or operators.

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“In this case, concerns were brought to the council's attention and immediate action was taken on the same day,” they said.

“The driver was suspended from carrying out council-funded school transport work and the vehicle was withdrawn from service pending further enquiries” – while “alternative transport arrangements were put in place”.

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The spokesperson added: “As part of our wider programme to strengthen home-to-school transport provision, we have recently introduced an in-house school transport service through Hoople.

“This provides greater oversight of vehicle standards, driver training, and safeguarding requirements, helping to ensure safe, reliable transport for children and young people across Herefordshire."

In the year to the end of this March, the council spent around £15 million on school transport, up 18 per cent on the previous year, with taxis accounting for half of this figure.