1. In the 2023/2024 financial year, how many eligible children did the Council pay to provide taxis for under the Home to School transport scheme?
Devon County Council does not hold information on overall totals either by calendar or financial year.
2. In the 2023/2024 financial year, how many eligible children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) did the Council pay to provide taxis for under the Home to School transport scheme?
Devon County Council does not hold information on overall totals either by calendar or financial year.
3. In the 2023/2024 financial year, how much, in total, did the Council pay to provide taxis for eligible children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) under the Home to School transport scheme?
Devon County Council does not hold information on overall totals either by calendar or financial year.
4. In the 2023/2024 financial year, what was the difference between the cost the Council had budgeted for providing taxis for eligible children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) under the Home to School transport scheme, and the cost the Council ultimately paid for providing those services?
Devon County Council does not hold this information.
5. In the 2023/2024 financial year, on how many occasions was a taxi journey for eligible children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) under the Home to School transport scheme paid for but not completed, for any reason (Illness, cancellation etc.)?
Devon County Council does not hold this information.
6. Did the Council have a contract in the 2023/24 financial year with a taxi company, or companies, to provide taxi services for eligible children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) under the Home to School transport scheme? If so, with how many companies did the Council have such a contract?
Yes but Devon County Council does not hold information on overall totals either by calendar or financial year.
7. If yes to Q. 6), did the Council operate an open, competitive bidding process for the tender of that contract?
Contracts are tendered, tendering is restricted to companies who are approved operators on the Council’s Dynamic Purchasing System.
8. If yes to Q.6), what was the payment structure under the terms of the contract from the Council to the taxi company (annual, quarterly, per-trip etc.)?
Contracts are paid either ‘manually’ where contractors submit invoices at the end of each month, or ‘periodically’ where the annual value of the contract is divided in to 12 and paid each month.
9. If yes to Q.6), were there any performance-based standards used to grade the quality of service, and value for money, being provided by the taxi company to the Council? If so, what were they?
No, contracts operate under the Passenger Transport Conditions of Contract.
10. If yes to Q. 9), did the contract terms allow the Council to cancel the contract if the taxi company failed to meet these standards?
N/A.