A REVIEW of school buses is under way to help Neath Port Talbot Council save money.

But education chiefs have pledged parents and pupils will be consulted if there are to be any changes that directly affect them.

The authority has passed a raft of measures to trim its education, leisure and lifelong learning budget by £1.5 million next year.

As the Evening Post has previously reported, these measures will include raising the price of school meals, reducing the schools adaptations and maintenance budget, managing vacancies and reducing the subsidy paid to Celtic Community Leisure.

But the biggest saving will be the £469,000 contribution that will no longer be made for children with complex learning needs — this will have to come out of schools' budgets instead.

Another measure will be what the council calls rationalisation of school routes — meaning a review of routes to reduce costs by £50,000.

Education director Karl Napieralla said the review was not a new development.

"We have been looking at this since last summer. We knew the seriousness and extent of the savings that had to be made," he said.

"It is the start of a larger review into all school transport. We have picked up anomalies where routes cross, times can be adjusted or single contracts can be let.

"We won't start immediately because we always try to start at the beginning of the new term. It is from now that, if individual pupils and parents are affected, we will start consultation."