Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what support her Department plans to provide to Local Transport Authorities for the delivery of mandatory bus staff training on (a) disability assistance and (b) the management of anti-social behaviour.

The Department is clear that high-quality staff training is essential to providing bus services that are accessible, inclusive, and safe for all passengers. The new statutory training requirements being introduced through the Bus Services (No.2) Bill will place duties on operators and, where relevant terminal managing bodies, so that relevant staff receive training on disability awareness and assistance and on how to recognise and respond appropriately to incidents of criminal and anti-social behaviour (ASB).

Local Transport Authorities (LTAs), working with operators, will have an important role in making sure these requirements are adopted. At the same time, the Department recognises that training needs to meet a consistently high standard and demonstrably improve outcomes for disabled people, women, girls and other passengers.

The Department already provides some support through its own REAL (Respect, Empathise, Ask, Listen) disability equality training package, which aims to help make travel inclusive and accessible for everyone using public transport. The training is intended to support staff training within each transport mode, including buses, and remains available.

In response to the Transport Select Committee's recent report, Access Denied, the Department committed to reviewing training provision standards. The outcomes of this work will support LTAs and operators to help to establish clear expectations and standards for staff training, so that training translates into real improvements in passenger experience.

In relation to ASB, the government will issue statutory guidance setting out what training should cover, for example incidences of violence against women and girls. Such training will have to be undertaken at least every five years.

Improvements to staff training and awareness comes on the back of future investment in local services across the country, with confirmation of £712 million for 25/26 allocated to local authorities, including funding to help them implement their Bus Service Improvement Plans (BSIP). The Department’s guidance to LTAs on producing their BSIPs makes clear that these should be designed to help make bus services more accessible and inclusive.