Council
19 February, 2026
MPs slam “inhumane” travel time for disabled student
TWO south west MPs have united to call for the Victorian Government to add additional public transport for Hampden P-12 after another student was left facing hours-long travel to and from school.
Member for South West Coast Roma Britnell, together with Member for Lowan Emma Kealy, are calling on the Allan Labor Government to urgently review school bus arrangements for students attending Hampden P-12 in Terang.
Their call follows concerns about the impact a newly-extended bus route will have on Ben (surname withheld), a seven-year-old from Mortlake with Down Syndrome and Autism Spectrum Disorder, who attends the specialist school best suited to his needs.
Until last year, Ben’s daily bus travel was around two hours.
Due to growing enrolments and route changes for 2026, the journey has now doubled.
Students requiring the use of bus services have expected extended travel times in recent years.
As Western District Newspapers revealed in July 2025, a Terang-based Hampden P-12 student attending the secondary campus in Cobden was also confronted with significant increases.
His bus collected him from 7.30am to get to school, and did not drop him back home until 5pm.
Ben is collected at 7am and does not return home until 5pm, spending four hours a day on a school bus.
“This is not a minor inconvenience,” Ms Britnell said.
“For a child with complex disability, this is harmful, unreasonable and inhumane.”
Ben requires support with feeding, toileting and regulation.
He cannot safely manage long periods of sitting.
Ms Kealy said extended travel places him at risk of physical distress, medical complications and exhaustion.
It also leaves him away from home for up to ten hours a day, five days a week.
“No child, especially a child with disability, should spend longer travelling to school than many adults spend travelling to work,” Ms Kealy said.
The drive between Mortlake and Terang is less than 20 minutes.
Ms Kealy said her understanding was the excessive travel time was the result of multiple towns being combined into one route, not distance.
The MPs united to call for a single additional bus to be added, which would allow the Mortlake route to return to a safe and humane schedule.
Hampden P-12 is growing, and transport services must grow with it.
“Children with disability and regional families have the same right to accessible education as everyone else,” Ms Britnell said.
“Transport is an essential service, not an optional extra.”
Ms Britnell and Ms Kealy are calling on the Allan Labor Government to act immediately by providing additional bus capacity for Hampden P-12.
“These are young children, not logistics. Their wellbeing must come first,” Ms Kealy said.
Western District Newspapers contacted the Department of Education with a number of questions seeking clarity on what changes were made, how many busses operate on the line for Hampden P-12 students and if any assessments will be made to add further busses to the line.
No response was received prior to publication.
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