Rural mother rides out school bus battle
A five-year-old boy who was barred from the school bus still can’t use it for several weeks, because of a travel seat his mother says he doesn’t need.
Jack Sayles, who is on the autistic spectrum, was refused entry to the bus with his older sisters on the 23-kilometre trip from his rural Owen River home to Murchison Area School, after he turned five last October.
The school said the Ministry of Education had assessed Jack as unsafe to travel on the bus, and it was appealing the decision. The ministry said ‘‘a good outcome’’ had been reached in discussions with the school and the bus company, Golden Bay Coachlines.
Jack’s mother Amy StuartForbes said the ministry called her directly for the first time about the matter last Friday, telling her Jack would be allowed on the bus this week if he had the ‘‘proper’’ seat.
Stuart-Forbes said Nelson Hospital provided her 10 months ago with a seat aimed at restraining Jack, which required a tool to release the belt. But when she tried to fit the seat in the school bus with principal Andy Ashworth on Monday, two buckles were missing.
Ashworth said Jack would be allowed on the bus, accompanied by a teacher aide, as soon as Stuart-Forbes found the missing pieces.
‘‘If Amy or the family are unable to provide that acceptable seat, then we . . . with the Ministry of Health and Ministry of Education, will seek out another seat of the same type, which assures us of Jack’s safety, but that could take another four to six weeks.’’
Stuart-Forbes said Jack had got hold of the buckles, and she couldn’t find one of them – and she couldn’t re-thread them anyway.
She had decided to ask the school to provide the seat, so there would be ‘‘no drama’’.
‘‘I wish they’d just listen to me when I say he doesn’t need this $1000 car seat. He just needs a $40 booster seat, if that, and his sister (aged 14) sitting beside him.’’
She said the hospital seat taught Jack to stay seated, and he did so in a regular car seat on the nearly 100-kilometres-a-day round trip to school, which Stuart-Forbes was forced to start making five months ago.
Jack should be given a ‘‘trial run’’ travelling to school on the bus with a booster seat, she said.
‘‘They don’t know what he’s like, he is not a danger.’’
Stuart-Forbes said she would ask Nelson Hospital to reassess Jack’s needs.