COUNCILLORS are to investigate the background to the controversial decision to take free transport from 150 schoolchildren.

A special Durham County Council working group is being set up to examine how officials came up with the proposal - approved by the cabinet - to remove the concession from pupils of Consett's Blackfyne Community School who live in Leadgate and face a 'dangerous' walk to school.

The scrutiny sub-committee for developing lifelong learning is asking the cabinet to put the decision on hold while its carries out the investigation, which could lead to a call for the decision to be reconsidered.

The investigation could have implications for youngsters in the 18 other areas that currently have concessionary travel because routes to school are considered unsafe.

Those arrangements could also come under the spotlight during the best value review of school transport that produced the Blackfyne proposal.

The Blackfyne concession was given in 1984 because of the hazards pupils faced walking to and from Leadgate and nearby hamlets.

But officials visited the area - mid-morning during the summer holidays - and concluded that the route was now safe and should not longer have the concession, a move that would save up to £30,000 a year. But local Independent councillor Watts Stelling said the criterion used in the assessment were too narrow and did not take account of local conditions such as the hilly terrain and the weather that might not apply in other areas.

He told the sub-committee there were additional worries about youngsters' safety as there had been incidents in the past of men exposing themselves to pupils.

"It isn't just about Leadgate and Blackfyne. I think it has implications for the rest of the unsafe routes that will be investigated. It just happens that my route has been chosen first.

"With this being the first investigation we should look and see if the criterion can be added to.''

The investigation will look at how council officials assessed the risk to pupils and whether changes should be made to the procedure.

Coun Stelling said he was extremely pleased with the decision reached by the sub-committee, which followed the first call-in of a cabinet decision since the council adopted its new constitution in January.