SOP-05 On-Route: Child & School Transport

1 Quick reference card

This quick reference card is the short version of this SOP. It is one page of the Quick Reference Handbook, the ring of cards in the cab. If you only have 30 seconds, use the card. The full procedure starts below.

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SOP-05 Quick reference

On-Route:
Child & School Transport

Child safety on your service

Side A

If This Happens – Do This

1Bus full, child at the stop: STOP. Never drive past. Contact Operations – they will say take the child, standing behind you at the first handle.
2Child in immediate danger: call 000, then Operations.
3Child seems distressed or discloses harm: stay calm, listen, don’t promise secrecy. Report it straight away, in private – supervisor or Operations.
4Behaviour problems: calm, clear instructions. Never humiliate. Dangerous or serious? 1 Tell them to stop · 2 Stop the bus when safe · 3 Contact Operations · 4 Incident Report in Mitti by the end of the journey.
5Suspected overcapacity with students: report to Operations immediately.
6End of every run: walk to the back – check every seat for a child.

No child left behind

There is always room for a child. Stop, contact Operations, take the child. TBS stands behind you.

Reporting is a legal duty

Any disclosure, allegation or observed risk to a child: report it straight away to your supervisor, a manager or Operations. Do not investigate it yourself.

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SOP-05 Quick reference

On-Route:
Child & School Transport

Rules, checklist & contacts

Side B

Key Rules & Thresholds

Child at the stop, bus full

Never Drive Past

Stop, contact Operations, take the child – behind you, first handle.

Physical contact

Emergency Only

Only to prevent immediate harm, or in an emergency.

Personal contact details

Never

No numbers, social media, gifts, or contact outside work.

CCTV

Always On

Never tampered with, covered, or interfered with.

Professional Boundaries – Always

Interactions open, observable and appropriate
No personal relationships with passengers
No sharing personal contact details or social media
No photographing or recording children
Never alone with a child unless your role requires it, with safeguards
Concerns reported straight away – every time

Contacts

Emergency000

Operations07 3733 3599

2 Purpose

This SOP tells you how to keep children and young people safe on your service, and what to do when something is wrong.

3 Applies To

All drivers on TBS services – TBS employees and contracted drivers alike (not the drivers of self-managed operators, who follow their own procedures) – on school services, charters and route services whenever children or young people are on board or at a stop. Steps marked Supervisor are performed by the on-duty supervisor or Operations.

4 Professional Boundaries – These Always Apply

These rules protect children – and they protect you. They are non-negotiable.

✓Treat children with respect, dignity and professionalism

✓Keep interactions open, observable and appropriate to the situation

✓Never use inappropriate language, gestures or physical contact

✓Physical contact only to prevent immediate harm, or in an emergency

✓Never exchange personal contact details, social media contact or gifts

✓Never seek to be alone with a child unless your role requires it, with safeguards in place

✓Never photograph or record children

✓Never tamper with, cover or interfere with CCTV

5 Scenarios – Trigger → Action

Find the situation that matches, and do the steps in order.

AService at Capacity, Student at the Stop BA Child Seems Distressed, at Risk, or Discloses Harm CManaging Student Behaviour DEnd of Every Run

Scenario A – Service at Capacity, Student at the Stop

1
Driver Stop the bus. Never drive past a child.
2
Driver Speak to the child. Calm, simple words: what is happening and what will happen next.
3
Driver Contact Operations. Say: bus full, child at the stop. They will tell you to take the child – that decision is theirs, and it protects you.
4
Driver Child on, standing right behind you at the first handle, and drive on. Seatbelted bus, no seat free: the same – Operations decide, and they will say take the child.
5
Supervisor Say “put the child on” and work out where the next seats free up. Log the overload; TBS carries it, not the driver.

No child left behind

There is always room for a child. A short overload – a few minutes to the next stop – is safer than a child alone at the roadside. Contact Operations first, take the child, and TBS stands behind you.

Scenario B – A Child Seems Distressed, at Risk, or Discloses Harm

6
Driver Stay calm and listen. Let the child speak. Do not press for details.
7
Driver Never promise to keep it secret. Tell the child, kindly, that you will get help from someone whose job it is.
8
Driver Do not investigate. Do not question other passengers or contact families. That is not your role.
9
Driver Report it straight away, in private – to your supervisor or a manager, or by phone to Operations. Never later than the end of your shift. Do not write the details in Mitti; your supervisor makes the record.

Immediate danger = 000

If a child is in immediate danger, call 000 first, then Operations.

10
Supervisor Escalate the report per the Child Safety procedure. Where required, TBS notifies Queensland Police or the Department of Child Safety. Keep the report strictly confidential.

You are protected

Reports made in good faith are confidential. TBS will not let anyone punish you for making one. Reporting a concern about a child is your duty – under the law and under TBS policy.

Scenario C – Managing Student Behaviour

11
Driver Give calm, clear instructions. Focus on the behaviour, not the child.
12
Driver Never humiliate, threaten or single out a child in front of others.
13
Driver Standing students: designated zones only, holding handrails at all times, only on approved vehicles.
14
Driver Dangerous or serious behaviour? Violence, throwing things, interfering with you, the doors or the windows (Code Categories 3–4). Do steps 13 to 16 in this order.
15
Driver Tell the students, calmly and clearly, to stop – while you look for a safe place to pull over.
16
Driver Stop the bus as soon as it is safe – even if they have already stopped. Dangerous behaviour is always reported, and you only report from a stopped bus. The Code makes stopping your first action.
17
Driver While the bus is stopped, contact Operations. Say where you are and what is happening.
18
Driver At the end of that journey, record it in Mitti as an Incident Report. Name the student and the school if you know them, and what you did.

Minor misbehaviour

Manage it with your voice. Do not stop the bus to discipline students.

Driving comes first

Do not let behaviour management take your attention off the road. If the situation is unsafe, stop the bus safely, then deal with it.

Scenario D – End of Every Run

19
Driver At the end of every run – school, route or charter – before you leave the bus or start the next run: walk to the back. Check every seat and the floor for a child asleep, hiding or unwell. Children fall asleep on every kind of bus, not only school runs.
20
Driver Child found? Stay with them and call Operations.

6 Associated Forms & Tools

Item	What it is used for
Radio / Ops line	Immediate notification of capacity events, distressed children, and safety concerns.
Incident Report (Mitti)	Student-behaviour incidents (Code Categories 3–4): in Mitti on your phone or tablet by the end of that journey – name the student and school if known, and what you did. A child at risk or disclosing harm: tell your supervisor or Operations straight away, in private – not Mitti; they will tell you what to record.
CCTV	A critical child-safety control. Checked at the PTI (SOP-02): not covered, not obstructed, not damaged. Never interfere with it.

Where do I find these forms?SOP-14 · The Forms and Reports – Your Shift, Start to Finish

7 Related SOPs

SOP	Title	Why it matters here
SOP-04	On-Route: Passenger Management	Capacity and standing rules on all services.
SOP-06	Incident, Accident & Hazard Reporting	How reports are recorded and escalated.
SOP-09	Customer Service & Complaints	Handling complaints, including serious allegations.
SOP-11	Post-Shift Vehicle Handover	The empty vehicle check at the end of every shift.

8 Related Policies

These TBS policies are the source of this SOP. They carry the full rules and the legal detail.

Policy	What it covers
TBS Children & Young People Safety Policy	Child-safe conduct, No Child Left Behind, boundaries, reporting obligations, Blue Card screening.
Code of Conduct for School Students Travelling on Buses (Qld)	Queensland’s official rules for student behaviour on buses (Categories 1–4). They are backed by law: a driver who ignores them can lose their Driver Authorisation.
TBS Standing Passenger Policy	School student standing protocol and overcapacity reporting.
TBS Human Rights Policy	Dignity, respect and non-discrimination for all passengers.

§ Version Control

Version	Date	Author	Approved by	Summary of changes
1.0	8 September 2026	Buswise	TBS approved	First issue.

Driver acknowledgement of this SOP is recorded in Mitti: the combined SOP document (SOP-01 to SOP-14) is acknowledged once, at onboarding, in Mitti Training.