School van service for children in emergency housing ‘so much more than transport’
Changes to a service transporting children living in emergency housing to and from school could have a negative impact on attendance and deepen social divides, principals fear.
The Ministry of Education had been running a van service to transport the children to school since March 2021.
The vans had school liaison whānau connectors on board to help link families with social services, to support regular attendance, and to connect displaced children with a school.
The service was scaled back from seven vans to two after a bus service was introduced for children living at the 13 contracted emergency housing motels in Term 3 last year. The whānau connectors were not included in the new bus service, and would instead focus on connecting non-enrolled students with local schools.
Link to article: Fighting for Rotorua: School van service for children in emergency housing ‘so much more than transport’ - NZ Herald
