Reasons for the Agreement
While the majority of children are well-behaved on buses some individuals do misbehave at times. If misbehaviour distracts the driver an accident can happen and people’s lives can be put at risk.
Stagecoach is a private company and expects its drivers and vehicles to be respected. It also expects that passengers will behave properly. Children who misbehave may give Stagecoach reason to stop providing the service to the students of our school.
It is in the best interests of everybody – including parents – for children using the service to obey the bus rules and to follow the instructions agreed to by the school and Stagecoach for the smooth operation of the service. The service is a privilege NOT a ‘right’.
Bus Rules
Students are expected to behave on the buses in a socially acceptable manner. This means that they show respect to everyone on the bus – including the driver – and that they act as good role models to others.
The following rules – with the sole exception of the last one – are valid for ALL users of Stagecoach’s bus services, not just school students. They apply to adult users of a regular service just as they apply to students using a school service.
- Tickets must be kept until the passenger is off the bus. Inspectors will check tickets.
- For safety reasons passengers must not talk or distract the driver.
- Passengers must not open the bus doors at any time. Only the driver is authorised to open a door.
- Passengers are not allowed to stand on or climb over seats.
- Passengers must never wilfully damage the buses. Wilful damage includes vandalism – graffiti [or tagging].
- Passengers are not allowed to eat or drink on the bus nor may they leave any rubbish or litter on the bus.
- Passengers must not throw things from the bus. This includes spitting.
- Passengers may not make obscene or taunting gestures to members of the public [whether young person or adult] while that person is in the bus or outside it.
- Students must not ring the bus bells unless there is a genuine emergency. The bus stops at pre-arranged points on the bus run.
The following rules are specific to the well-being of all students and the good reputation of the school.
- School rules apply on the bus. This includes the correct wearing of the school uniform and the use of the Dress Code. Every student on the school bus is under the authority of the school.
- Students line up in single file without pushing in or saving places in line for others.
- Students do not save seats by putting their bags or personal property on them.
- Students must sit down. They don’t remain standing if there are seats available.
- Students are only allowed to ride on the bus [e.g. 027] allocated to them.
- Students must report misbehaviour as soon as possible by using on Incident Form.
- Bus students are expected to support the Bus Monitors by carrying out their requests in a reasonable way.
- Bus passes must be carried at all times and shown on request of staff members or employees of Stagecoach. These ensure only authorised people use school buses.
Consequences
Parents will be informed if their child breaks these rules. A student my face consequences from both Stagecoach [expecting reimbursement for damage done] and the school [removal from the bus for a period of time]. The student may face school discipline [such as detention, stand down or suspension] and loss use of the bus service [such as removal from the bus for a stated period of time]. The removal of bus privileges will always be stated in terms of ‘weeks removed’ and the date the students may use the bus again. Naturally, repeat offending will result in more severe consequences. Stagecoach has the right to ban specific people from riding on their buses at any time in the same way that shop keepers may put a ‘trespass order’ on certain people.
Commitment
This agreement is about creating a safe, happy and orderly environment for people using the bus. We would expect that parents would want this for their children and for other people’s children. The school works closely with Stagecoach to have good, clean safe buses and school staff give their time after school to loading the buses safely, pleasantly and in a fair and orderly manner. We expect, therefore, that parents and students will be supportive of all parties.
Any concerns you may have about our students’ behaviour or about the service should be brought to the attention of the Deputy Principal who takes such matters very seriously. After school hours, parents and caregivers can contact Stagecoach on 2755195 [fax 2794471].
When the agreement is signed and returned to school a photocopy will be returned to the family. If the agreement is not returned we may assume that families have made other arrangements for having children taken to and from school.