By Kath Gannaway
A new bus, on the road this week, will provide transport for young people from ‘down the line’ wanting to attend Cire Community School in Yarra Junction.
Cire Services at Yarra Junction caters for Years 7 to 12.
Cire currently provides a bus from Healesville and Badger Creek to the Yarra Junction campus to meet the increased interest that has come with the inclusion of Years 7, 8 and 9.
Expanding the service to Chirnside Park, Mooroolbark, Mount Evelyn and Lilydale will remove a barrier for students wanting to move away from mainstream schooling to the Cire model that caters to the needs of students who have disengaged from mainstream education.
Cire principal Tim Knowles said a lot of the younger kids didn’t have the skills to use public transport and the new service would give that extra support, and options.
“We recognise that many of our students need an extra level of support in order to have a successful high school experience and are committed to providing theses extra services to our school community,” Mr Knowles said.
Transport is among a number of barriers not only to their education but to their ability to access professional health services.
In recognition of the complex issues impacting on young people’s ability to remain engaged in learning, the school’s wellbeing program creates links to wellbeing staff and community health professionals including doctors, psychologists, alcohol and drug counsellors and housing service workers.
The door-to-door bus services remove one of the fundamental barriers – getting to the school and home again.
For more information on the Cire Community School, and the school bus services, phone Cire Services on 1300 835 235.
