Written evidence submitted by Northumberland County Council (CTT0206)

Background

Northumberland County Council (NCC) received a copy of the Department of Transports 31 July, 2017 letter addressed to issuers of S19 and S22 minibus permits.  NCC is not an issuing authority having never issued S22 permits and having relinquished its powers to issue S19 permits in 2011. However, whilst not a permit issuing body, the Council has an interest in community transport driver and vehicle licensing as the Council routinely contracts with the sector commissioning public, education, special educational needs and adult services transport contracts.  The Community Transport (CT) sector if eligible can apply for these contracts provided that the operator conforms to the following points below abstracted from the Council’s Conditions of Contract :

In this regard the Council has chosen to respond to the Parliament Transport Select Committee inquiry into the licencing arrangements for community transport in the light of the Department for Transport’s 31 July letter on Section 19/22 Permits and driver licensing.

Given the significant rural nature of Northumberland, NCC has within the establishment a post of Community Transport Officer (since the early 1990’s), working with both communities and Community Transport Operator’s (CTO’s). During this time the Council has worked with the permit system introduced following the 1985 Transport Act which recognised that rural areas and certain sections of the population would not be serviced unless a non commercial regime were introduced.  After then and during that time many varied voluntary and community initiatives have been developed harnessing both grant aid and voluntary resource to make cost effective services to serve those populations without transport.  Periodically Dft has itself provided grant aid administered by the Rural Development Commission, Countryside Agency, local authorities or otherwise which Northumberland has taken advantage of.

Some aspects of Northumberland’s population create a more difficult environment to operate transport commercially, including:

• Lower rates of pay for its residents. The gross weekly pay of Northumberland residents in 2016 was £487 and in workplaces it was £460.  The England average (which includes Northumberland also) was £545.
• An ageing population - The 2016 mid year estimates showed Northumberland to have 23.6% of its' population aged 65 and over compared with England as a whole which has 17.9%.
• A greater proportion of people living in rural areas - Sourced from Northumberland Knowledge Research Report February 2014, Table 2: Usual Resident population of urban and rural areas, Northumberland & England & Wales, 2011

Northumberland has 5 community transport organisations, Adapt North East, Bellevue Community Transport, North East Equality and Diversity (NEED) ltd, Upper Coquetdale Community Transport (UCCT) and WATBus who each operate regular transport services for those in rural areas, the elderly population and for people who have not got their access to their own transport. Four out of five CT operators meet the derogations from the EU regulation 1071/2009 and have a main occupation other than that of road passenger transport operator. The remaining operator NEED Ltd is the only operator those main business activity is concerned with the provision of community transport, the other operators have other priorities along with that of CT.

Three of the operators, Adapt north nast, NEED Limited and WATbus are registered on the Council’s framework agreement to undertake public, home to school and special educational needs (SEN) transport contracts.

CT became more important to Northumberland when the Dft extended to S19 permit eligibility (March 2003) to include people living in rurally isolated communities provided that they could meet the eligibility i.e. those who do not have transport available to them. At this point community transport could expand its membership to include remote rural areas and communities, being as Northumberland is largely rural this is one of the main reasons why CT in Northumberland began to thrive.

It was also notable that in 2006 much grant aid disappeared from the sector leaving CT’s with diminishing budget to sustain transport services. It was at this point two of Northumberland’s larger CTO’s went down the ‘contracting route’ tendering for public, education and health transport services to generate income in order to be able to sustain services for which there was no competition and serving members of the population who had no services available to them. More to the point CTO’s felt encouraged by Dft to ‘trade’ to bridge the gap of the loss of grants to their sector.

Questions posed by the select committee are in bold below followed by Northumberland County councils response.

1. The effectiveness of the DfT, DVSA and Traffic Commissioner's guidance to, and regulation of, community transport: in particular, the DfT’s role in providing clarity to the sector about the implications of EU Regulation EC 1071/2009 and the July 2017 outcome of a relevant DVSA licensing investigation of an individual CTO

The DFT S19 and S22 permit guidance leaves much to interpretation, creating barriers to entry for any organisation entering into community transport. As a result, understanding and learning for any new operator requires them to work with the Community Transport Association (CTA) or learn from more experienced operators in the field. The Council has also had to work hard to strengthen recognised limitations in the existing guidance.

Traffic Commissioners and permit issuing - a noticeable lack of expertise in respect of providing specialist guidance and support to the CT sector - it has never felt like a high priority with staff knowledge limited to providing guidance on the completing the correct application forms to the CTA or local authority.

DVSA Compliance checks - NCC have had limited interactions with the DVSA in respect of provision of CT and do not fully understand the role the DVSA plays within the sector as there is limited visibility in Northumberland.

To enhance awareness of how to run community transport S19 and S22 services the Community Transport Association (CTA) has maintained a constant independent reliable source of information guidance and promoted good practice on all aspects of CT operation for the sector, encouraging all CT’s to work towards innovation and quality improvements.  The CTA’s support to CT’s has exceeded all other organisations mentioned.

The CTA are viewed within the sector in Northumberland as the main source of guidance and expertise.

The July 2017 outcome of a relevant DVSA licensing investigation of an individual CTO has brought about widespread confusion with more questions than answers for CT’s.  CT’s are now unsure about how to take their services and organisations forward particularly as new implications will cause major financial difficulties.  Local authorities and commissioners of transport services are unclear now as to whether they should continue to commission CT services and local authority owned and operated community transport operated fleets are threatened. The outcome of not commissioning CTO’s is the loss of the added value services they provide funded by the CTO’s themselves and ultimately it  is to the individuals/users who rely on CT services who experience the ultimate loss of livelihood which is a major detrimental factor.

The letter from the Department for Transport of 31st July has not provided sufficient clarity and information on the future implications for CT organisations and their services. This clarity is sought as a matter of urgency.

Missing elements of the DFT letter are:

- timescales for CT operators to comply, if they are able, with the new regulations.

- suggestions as to how authorities might bridge any gap potentially left by withdrawal from the market by CT operators in the interim. The alternative operations have been found to have higher costs to provide a similar level of service. For LA’s commissioning contracts, there are serious financial implications, particularly for provision of services that are considered discretionary in budgets. This financial penalty can only be averted by the need for government to reconsider these budget implications with more dedicated funding to both CT operators and service commissioner's (LA’s) in order to maintain the level of services in rural areas. The alternative  for members of the community with mobility difficulties is that they will not get access to essential services.

For both commissioners and the CT sector in Northumberland it is important to resolve this issue as early as possible to provide clarity for all parties.

2. The effects on commercial operators of the longstanding approach of licensing community transport services via Section 19 and/or 22 permits (Transport Act 1985)                                                                     

In Northumberland CT operators have been asked to fill gaps in the network and provide feeder access to the commercial network for onward travel. Where commercial services are not economically viable NCC will look to other ways of plugging gaps with CT or other demand responsive services, taxi bus, shared taxi. When public transport contracts are won by the community transport sector they are often costed at a fraction of the price.  In a recent example the 691 service between Upper Coquet and Morpeth was re-tendered and won by a CT operator at a cost of £53 per day, the nearest commercial bid was £240 per day. NCC would not have been able to afford the commercial rate and Upper Coquetdale would have been left without any service.

Either plugging gaps created by withdrawal of supported/commercial bus services or as frequently is the case to provide door to door disabled accessible services for elderly and disabled residents who can no longer access the public bus network.

Kielder is a remote area of the County and when the service was last re-tendered the tender prices were not economically viable and therefore the local CT operator was approached to instigate a S22 minibus permit operation otherwise no service would exist for the Kielder community.

3. The safety, security and service quality implications of licensing community transport services via such permits                                         

There is no doubt that the CT sector is committed to high quality passenger safety and security, going beyond basic driver training requirements of MIDAS and in many cases is superior to the commercial sector. In addition to the MIDAS driver vehicle training community minibus drivers in Northumberland are required to routinely undertake additional training directed at passenger care including First Aid, Equality and Diversity, Anaphylaxis, Child Safety, CPR training, Safeguarding, Dementia Awareness, Safe Evacuation are viewed as mandatory within the sector.

On top of the training the S19 permit system adds an extra layer of care as each passenger will have completed an application form to be a member service user of a particular CTO. Passengers using CT are often vulnerable and if their personal records are held by the CTO there driver assistance with boarding and alighting from the vehicle can be tailored to the particular passengers need.

Part of each CTO membership form will ask for an Emergency contact for a passenger adding to the individual care for each passenger.  

With the use of dial a ride services registered members book a seat on the vehicle, from the initial pick up point of a registered users journey on the vehicle they are assisted and supported with drivers or passenger assistants offering help with boarding and alighting from the vehicle.  Often when passengers leave the vehicle the care continues with the supermarket customer care.  This happens with a number of services in Northumberland whereby Sainsbury’s offer a continuation of care and that people with mobility difficulties, often the elderly are never left alone with people helping at all stages.  Dial a rides licensed by the S19 permit is not offered by the commercial sector and allows independent living and helps combat loneliness.

All CT drivers whether paid or voluntary are interviewed for suitability and aptitude, driver licence checks and checked for DBS as a minimum requirement before driving.                                                                     

In order to bid for contracts in Northumberland, under NCC framework CT operators are required to have or be working towards the CTA Quality Mark.

4. The potential effects in the short and longer term on different types of CTOs, and the people who rely on their services, of a move away from permits towards PSV operator and PCV driver certificates and licences.

Older people, those with a disability, those who are rurally and/or socially isolated, young people and those who are unable to afford or have access to public or private transport will be left with reduced transport or without out transport and therefore unable to access essential services which benefit their well-being. The consequences on each of these individuals can only be negative leading to potential social isolation and reduced independence which could lead to a reliance on adult social services to meet needs previously provided by the CT sector.

Alternatively meeting individuals well being, costs are likely to be transferred to the health and social care sectors to meet individual health and social care requirements and these departments would have to bear the cost of transport at significantly increased rates.

CTO’s will face increased costs to move from permits and MIDAS to PSV vehicle licensing and PCV driver licensing which threatens their livelihood and which threatens to withdraw essential lifeline services to those people who have no alternative which could undermine the viability of the CT sector and result in increased costs for vulnerable service users. The anticipated cost to one of Northumberland CT’s is identified below:

The County benefits from CTO’s by the additional services and added value, the loss of contract work for CT operators will restrict the number of services provided at marginal cost which other wise wouldn’t exist which include, CT operated and funded dial a rides, GP services.                                                                                                 

•                                As an authority Northumberland County Council when selecting an operator for a public contract it is done on a value for money basis however when contracts are awarded to a CT operator there is likely to be a community benefit, which adds value to the local area or community which otherwise would not exist, therefore providing extra social value which would not be provided by the commercial sector.
•  

The letter from the Department for Transport on 31st July has caused confusion amongst the Council as to whether already had an impact on the work of your organisation.

5. Suggested approaches to the funding, commissioning and licensing of community transport in the short and longer term, to ensure community transport services, particularly for vulnerable and potentially isolated people, can be safely maintained in a sustainable and value-for-money way

It needs to be recognise the important and unique role the CT sector plays in Northumberland and elsewhere in the country and create the conditions to allow the sector to thrive and fill the gaps remaining by contracting a commercial public transport network.  Community transport prides itself on the services it offers to the mobility disadvantaged through its vehicle access and driver training, any legislation that results from this exercise should consider bringing the commercial sector up to the standard set by the CT sector.

CT services are questioned when in a competitive arena and there is no reason why CT shouldn’t compete with bus operators for contracts as competition is healthy for the transport sector.  These two areas are 1. in areas of market failure and 2. for school contracts - suggestions are separated in these two areas below:

1. Passenger transport in areas of market failure. It is well recognised that rural areas are not commercially viable providing transport for people requiring transport services have not got personal transport available to them is difficult. Very often it is the elderly who need ‘dial a ride’ type services once a week to access shops and services, or they need help accessing GP’s or hospitals; sometimes it is young people accessing their first job.  For these people CT is vitally important and should be allowed to continue to thrive. Services of this type should be removed from general passenger transport budget separately funded and jointly funded with ‘health’ and ‘social care’ in order to direct resource to these areas where commercially services are not viable and design services with the extra passenger care required. It is long overdue that Health and Social Care departments should be involved in the design and funding of these services, and support from these government departments should be received. In the case of other minority people requiring transport, young or otherwise, accessing employment, budgets should come from Job Centre Plus or Wheels to Work budgets.

Bespoke services designed for the particular passenger group allowing the commercial market to bid also if they meet the access and passenger care requirements if they choose to do so. Commercial operators if they want to compete, for example, for a S19 type service will need to establish a registration and booking system.

In addition it would be helpful if concessionary fares were unilaterally accepted on S19 permit vehicles and dial a rides. Concessionary fares acceptance is another inequality for CT operators - commercial operators can accept on their commercial services and yet CT operated dial a rides cannot accept them. Northumberland has a policy to accept older and disabled persons concessionary travel passes for its contracted services, however CTO’s who have their own dial a rides are not refunded for passengers using these services.

2.                For school and special needs contracts. A number of CT operators undertake school transport contracts before before 9 am then go onto provide for example ‘demand responsive’ GP referrals at marginal cost to the CTO. Without the school contract there is no investment for the GP referral scheme and therefore no service, but yet the GP referral service is vital to a minority number of people. It would be more helpful if that added social value is considered as the norm in evaluating bids for passenger transport services. That way additional services provided by the CT sector could be recognised by other commercial operators.

For CT operators undertaking school contracts the operating model described, works for CTO’s and therefore CT operators should continue to be allowed to tender for such services but a licence regime should be created that does offer a level playing field. There would need to be two components to this i.  increasing the commercial sectors passenger assistance qualities currently offered by CT and ii. bringing driver licence and vehicle to the same standard. In the short term a transitionary fund will be needed, whilst this won’t be respected by the taxi operators of less than 16 seats maybe the sweetener is the availability of potential funding for driver passenger assistance training is on offer for them also.

6 November 2017