As part of a cost saving exercise Derby City Council has awarded a contract to Nottingham Specialist Transport Ltd to provide all of the Home to School transport service for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) attending 5 schools in the City.
There are around 40-50 vehicles, each day, carrying several hundred children to:
- Ivy House School
- St Giles’ School
- St Martin’s School
- St Clare’s School
- St Andrew’s School
Derby City Council taxi licensing rules require that all Private Hire vehicles ( including minibuses) must be identified by door panel signs showing the name of the operator. However, as Nottingham Specialist Transport, and its vehicles, are licensed by Rushcliffe Borough Council, which does not have this condition, all of their minibuses are unmarked; this is a potential safeguarding issue.
Both Councils have a strict requirement that all drivers wear identification badges, at all times. On inspection, it was clear that none of the drivers were wearing their badges.
Who is Nottingham Specialist Transport Ltd.
It was incorporated in 11 June 2020 with a sole director/shareholder – Waseem Rashid. It’s first full year of trading ended 30 June 2022; it declared that it had 1 employee. Its trading address is above the Co-op in West Bridgford, Nottingham.
It shares this office with Ace Cars and Minibuses Ltd, a company that was incorporated in 2018 and which started trading in the year to Jan 2020. Safeen Akhtar is the sole director/shareholder. She had a Walsall based taxi hire company, prior to that, which went into liquidation owing £400k. She is still a registered private hire operator in Walsall.
She is also a licensed in Nottingham City and Rushcliffe Borough where she is a prime operator of wheelchair accessible vehicles.
The corporate address for both Nottingham Specialist Transport and Ace Cars is a 5 bed detached residential house in Edwalton, Nottingham.
New contract – illegal operation
Derby City Council awarded the £1.8m pa ( initially for 2 years) contract to Nottingham Specialist Transport on 11 May 2023 with a commencement date of 4 September 2023.
Within days, minibuses were observed with no taxi licence plates on the front / rear, drivers not wearing badges, and vehicles not being taxed.
One vehicle, which was used for the run to Ivy House School, had a taxi licence plate showing, which was out of date. Whilst it was operating under the Nottingham Specialist Transport contract, it was a vehicle licenced to Mrs Safeen Akhtar through Rushcliffe Borough Council.
Comment
Transporting vulnerable children is more than just a transactional driving service. Many SEND children will require consistency of driver, as well as sensitivity to their individual needs. It is unreasonable to expect a parent to place their child in an unmarked minibus driven by someone who is not showing their identity, and licensing legitimacy, at all times.
To exacerbate this, there is a question over the extent to which the Council is receiving the service from Nottingham Specialist Transport or from an unofficial consortium with Ace Cars and Minibuses.
Unfortunately parents don’t have a choice but to use the service on offer; the alternative would be prohibitively expensive for them.
Derby City Council may well have reduced the financial costs of the taxi service but at what safeguarding cost to the vulnerable child. A very short-sighted decision and one that should be reviewed and proper safeguarding principles implemented.
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Derby News 
Interesting article. I wonder if Derby City Council understand that their values of ‘bold’ and ‘strong’ shouldn’t equate to shady under the table deals with taxi firms who fail to declare their employees. Or any employees, for that matter. Shouldn’t the council have a record of taxi drivers and passenger assistants on each route before awarding the contract? Other firms are expected to present valid documentation around drivers and assistants before confirming contracts. I wonder why Nottingham Specialist Transport get a pass. Interesting indeed.
Shocking what the council expects people to put up with.
This isn’t the first time Derby City Council have cut costs for SEND children without addressing mismanagement of public funds in their budget. As always, those most vulnerable and with the most severe needs are sacrificed for ‘the budget’.
Well done to DCC for lining the pockets of an illegal operation run by what is clearly a husband/wife duo building an empire on insolvency and taxpayer money. And well done to the taxi drivers of DCC who continue to pay licencing fees to a council determined to circumvent Competition Law and drive them to rely on Universal Credit. And a special mention for the SEND schools allowing such atrocitious services to even have vulnerable children in their care for a single moment.
Absolutely, 100% spot on on all accounts. Particularly regarding the husband/wife team lining their pockets and the DCC just concerned with cost cutting. They do not care about the vulnerable children and their families.
Whilst I have read the article. It clearly shows it’s biased and going with what it has heard not by any facts or evidence provided. I’m a parent whose child is picked up and dropped off daily by this school transport company.
I’ve experienced great service from the van driver that picks up my child. He’s always on time and keeps in contact, something which previous company drivers haven’t done.
Yes I noticed the first time the plates were not showing at the front of the van. I remember asking and he presented the van plates which were put on within days. The driver and the escort even showed me their badges and always have them displayed around their neck. They even visited my house a week before the start date to get to know my child which hasn’t been done in the past. (So NO it isn’t any random unmarked van I am putting my child in).
No business is perfect regardless of who runs it but end of the day as a parent my child makes it safe to school and back and in under good hands with the van driver. The van also looks well maintained to me so I have no issues with this company so far. It’s the parents opinions that matter, not those who believe anything they read.
If your not a parent with this company. Mind your own business.
It’s time parents got together and made a report to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman. Clearly the council think they can get away with their Conservative ways. Why is this new Labour Administration continuing shoddy practices? We voted you in. Isn’t it time you show us why?
It’s time to end this culture of bullying and silencing complainants, violating policies with no concern for the law.
Unbelievable! I am truly appalled, and indeed, the council cannot allow this firm to be unregulated and put vulnerable children at risk. If a backhanded deal has taken place to allow such a firm to circumvent standards, I wonder how this can be escalated.