School transport—payment for school arranged travel escort (individual travel support) for students with disability

​​Purpose

To assist schools with the costs of wages for departmental personnel undertaking individual travel support for students with disability. This support is provided to eligible students through the School Transport Assistance Program for Students with Disability, as outlined in the school transport assistance program for students with disability procedure (PDF, 4398KB).

Travel is between the approved transport location and school at the start and end of their school day.

Duration of program

Ongoing

Eligibility

A school arranged travel escort may be considered when all other stakeholder sources to provide individual travel support due to a student's medical or safety requirements have been exhausted. The need for a school arranged escort must be outlined in the student’s approved school transport application, which authorises the school to arrange for one or more suitable persons to undertake this duty as defined in the procedure (PDF, 398KB).

All Queensland state schools with eligible students approved for a school arranged escort may receive funding.

Where a school arranged travel escort is required and the school does not have an existing staff member available to undertake the escort duty, a suitable person may be employed by the school to cover the hours required. Employment on a casual or fixed term temporary basis may be appropriate in these circumstances, given travel escort hours are subject to student need (i.e. not permanent/ongoing).

Allocation of funds

School arranged travel escort duties are usually undertaken by teacher aides.

Schools should first seek to cover travel escort duties using existing teacher aides before employing new teacher aides (on a casual or fixed term temporary basis).

For existing permanent or fixed term temporary teacher aides, the time required for travel escort duties can be covered via a temporary roster variation to increase the teacher aide’s rostered hours to cover the travel escort time. If the teacher aide does not agree to a temporary roster variation, they are entitled to payment for additional hours for any time worked in excess of their rostered hours in accordance with clause 8.6(b) of the Department of Education Teacher Aides' Certified Agreement 2022 (note: permanent or fixed term temporary teacher aides are not entitled to casual rates for additional hours worked).

If there is no existing teacher aide available to undertake travel escort duties, the school may employ a new teacher aide on a fixed term temporary or casual basis. Selecting the appropriate basis of employment must be determined in accordance with the industrial instruments—Department of Education Teacher Aides' Certified Agreement 2022 (PDF, 845KB) and the General Employees (Queensland Government Departments) and Other Employees Award—State 2015 (PDF, 805KB).

Teacher aide hours worked are charged to the available school-purchased funds fortnightly through the same payroll system as all centrally funded staff. Morning and afternoon travel are treated as separate engagements for the purposes of funding (note: employment conditions and entitlements (e.g. minimum hours payable; minimum hours of engagement) are paid in accordance with the relevant industrial instruments).

Funding is based on actual wages incurred, including travel undertaken prior to being informed of the student absence.

School claims are submitted to school transport (central office) for each month in the school year the wages are incurred, after the salary recoveries process is completed.

Payment details

Following the review and approval of submitted claims, payments to schools are made in the next available monthly School Appropriation Payments Application (SAPA) run.

Data requirements

How to apply

Schools are to submit the following information on a monthly basis by email to schooltransport.facilities@qed.qld.gov.au for review and processing.

• Principal approved individual travel assistance personnel payments claim form – individual escorts
• Relevant OneSchool salary/wage recovery debit note

Further information

• School transport assistance program for students with disability procedure (PDF, 400KB)
• School recovery processes for school-purchased labour procedure (PDF, 253KB)
• OneSchool salary recovery guide (PDF, 1.7MB) (p.13)
• Knowledge based article—teacher aides undertaking student escort duty for eligible students with disability—DoE employees can use the search function on Services Catalogue Online
• For exceptional circumstances, please contact your Regional HR officer for assistance.

Contact

School Transport
Strategic Engagement
Early Childhood and State Schools
Phone: (07) 3034 4579
Em​ail: schooltransport.facilities@qed.qld.gov.au