School Transport
Student Code of Conduct

We want you and all other passengers to stay safe and travel in comfort. You must agree to the following code of conduct before we issue your bus pass. Your school and parents (or carers) will be alerted if you do not keep to the code and we may have to withdraw your transport assistance.

Your pass/e-ticket

Your pick-up point. 

Keeping safe when getting on and off the bus

On the bus

Please be aware of monitoring the behaviour of passengers using CCTV. CCTV footage may be consulted as evidence if it is alleged that the code of conduct has been breached.

Reporting Unacceptable Behaviour

The Code of Conduct exists to ensure that pupils feel safe on board transport provided by Grindles Coaches Ltd, so it is important to us that if you have a concern about behaviour on one of our services you can easily report it.

If you are concerned about behaviour on your (or your child’s) school bus, please send your report to the email address hometoschool@grindlescoaches.co.uk. Your report should include:

Please note that although Grindles Coaches Ltd does cooperate with the school to investigate reports of poor behaviour, transport bans are at Grindles Coaches Ltd exclusive discretion.

All reports will remain anonymous; the name of the complainant will not be disclosed to other transport users.

Updates to the Code of Conduct

The Code of Conduct is a live document, and will be updated routinely over the course of a school year. Updates will usually be issued in June and December, but may be published at any point. It is the responsibility of each transport user to ensure they have read and understand the most recent copy of the code before travelling. The latest edition will always be available via our website – visit www.grindlescoaches.co.uk/schools

If you would like to withdraw from home-to-school transport following an update to our terms, please contact hometoschool@grindlescoaches.co.uk.

Sanctions for Unacceptable Behaviour

From time to time it is necessary to impose sanctions on children and young people who fail to conform to an acceptable standard of behaviour.

A parent or legal guardian must take responsibility for their children’s behaviour on the way to and from school. It is their duty to ensure that their children understand why it is essential to behave properly in the transport provided. Young people over the age of 16 are responsible for their own behaviour and we expect them to adhere to the code of conduct independently. Poor behaviour, especially that which puts at risk the safety of any other child, driver or road user, will lead to a ban on use of the transport provided. The responsibility to transport a banned child to school is transferred to the child’s parent or legal guardian.

We will investigate any complaint received from any other party, and be seen to act against anyone who contravenes the policies and agreements entered into. We will not ban pupils before discussing any proposed action with the head teacher of the school involved.

As part of our commitment to providing a safe environment for the transport of children and young people to and from school, we have determined a procedure for dealing with cases of poor behaviour reported to us, and have adopted the following list of sanctions that may be applied in certain circumstances. This is not an exhaustive list, nor is it a definitive statement that in every case the sanction indicated will be applied regardless of other circumstances. Each case will be considered on its individual merits, in consultation with the school.

Guidelines for first offences

1 Day Ban

Unhygienic behaviour, including: consuming or spilling food or drink, littering, spitting.

1 Week Ban

Self-endangerment or mischief, including: distracting driver, misuse of bell, not wearing a seatbelt (where seatbelts are available), leaving seat while the vehicle is moving.

1 Month Ban

Activities that affect, threaten or endanger others, including: bullying or fighting other passengers, misuse of emergency exit, chronic and ongoing poor behaviour.

1 Term Ban

Hazardous or criminal activities, including: assault of the driver or another passenger, possession of drugs, damage to vehicle, using or intending to use weaponry.

Please note that these are only guidelines; all bans are determined on a case-by-case basis. Where passengers who have previously been assigned bans continue to offend, they should expect longer bans than described above. For example, a passenger who repeats an offence that resulted in a 1 Week ban may subsequently be banned for 1 Month, or a passenger who has received several 1 Week bans may be banned permanently upon committing a 1 Term offence.

When enforcing transport bans, no distinction will be made between bullying and “banter.” The difference between benign and spiteful behaviour can be difficult to judge and is usually irrelevant (as light-hearted misbehaviour is often no less dangerous or distracting). We will not consider whether a rule breach was teasing rather than torment, even where it is relatively clear.

Criminal Offences

Any criminal offences that result in a ban may also be reported to the police. The following behaviours are likely to result in criminal investigation.

Notifications

We will investigate the incident, including the recovery of any CCTV footage, and enforce the appropriate ban outlined above as necessary. Parents will be notified of this action by letter, or where an instant ban is justified, by telephone and later confirmed in writing. It is the responsibility of the parent or guardian to transport the child to school whilst the ban is in place.