Friday June 27th 2025
Lasswade Centre
Written by Local Democracy Reporter, Marie Sharp
Tax drivers in Midlothian have been told they can no longer allow school pupils to travel in the front passenger seat under new contract rules.
Midlothian Council says the change in policy is for safety with ‘driver distraction’ a concern when children are in a car.
Councillors this week expressed concern after they were told the cost of home to school transport across the county last year went over budget by a staggering 55%.
But while finance bosses put the overspend of £1.7million down to the way records were kept and late invoice payments making it hard to predict how much the service would cost in advance, questions were asked about the way it was being operated.
Councillor Derek Milligan told the meeting: “One of my colleagues who works in this (school transport) has told me that just in the last month or two there has been a diktat came out saying do not use the front seat of the taxis.
“So now if you have a taxi picking up multiple children that is going round the rural area where you might have needed five in the past you are now going to need six or seven because you have massively reduced the number of pupils that can be picked up.
“Now there might be a perfectly legitimate reason for that, but we need to look at stuff like that. We need to get a grip of this transport service because the way we are looking at it now it (the cost) is just going to go up and up.”
A council spokesperson insisted the change would not have an impact on the cost of the service or taxi numbers.
They said: “Council has advised all contracted school transport providers, including taxi operators, that the default expectation is for children to be seated in the rear of vehicles wherever possible. This reflects recognised safety practice and supports a consistent approach across all school transport arrangements.
“Under UK law, children must use a suitable child car seat until they are either 12 years old or 135 cm tall, whichever comes first. After this point, they must wear a seatbelt.
“While legislation permits children who meet these criteria to travel in the front seat using the correct restraint, we do not actively encourage front seating.
“National road safety bodies, including the Department for Transport and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA), advise that the rear seat is generally safer for child passengers. This is due to the added protection it provides in the event of a collision and to reduce exposure to front passenger airbags, which, in some vehicles, are designed primarily for adults.
“Rear seating also helps reduce driver distraction, contributing to a safer transport environment — especially when multiple pupils are being transported.
“The Council’s priority is always the safety and well-being of all passengers during transport. This seating guidance was communicated to all providers as part of the most recent school transport tender process. It reflects current practice and is not expected to have a direct impact on vehicle numbers or costs. Route allocations for the upcoming school year are still being finalised and remain under review.”
During the council meeting earlier this week elected members agreed to establish a cross party group to look into the costs of the home to school transport service.
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