What are the new school guidelines?
All students in The Early Learning Village (including Prep students) are required to use a school-approved child safety restraint when traveling on the school bus.
Students in Year 1
and above may also use a school approved booster seat on the school bus, at the
discretion of parents.
| Age of Child | 4-6 Year olds (P4-Prep) | Year 1 and above |
| Restraint Type | Ride Safer Delight Safety Vest (with a minimum height of 88.9cm and weight of 13.6kg) | Mifold Booster Seat |
| School Requirement | Required | At parents' discretion |
What are the recommended safety restraints?
Safety Vest – 2-6 year olds (with a minimum weight of 13.6kg and height of 88.9cm):
The RideSafer Delight Vests ensures that the adult seat belt is placed safely and comfortably across your child's body. The belt and shoulder straps adjust as your child grows.
It comes in 2 sizes using the child’s weight and height as a guide. Children can continue to use the safety vest for as long as the lap belt guides sit flat against their legs and not on their pelvis/stomach.
Note: the RideSafer Delight Vests are crash test certified for children 3 years and older, but are legal CSR’s in Singapore as long as the child meets the weight and height specified.
Where can I purchase the car seat / RideSafer Vest / Mifold booster seat? How much will they cost?
These products will be available soon for purchase online through a special AIS portal on Taxi Baby - please click this link to view them: taxibaby.sg/
RideSafer Safety Vest - $229
Mifold Booster seat - $85
The prices are special 'educational' prices for AIS families. We have worked with Taxi Baby to provide all the child restraints at the lowest price possible. Taxi Baby will also add a child safety pack for all AIS parents who buy a RideSafer Safety Vest at no extra cost. In order to secure these prices and the child safety pack, you will need to have the products delivered to AIS and we will contact you when they have arrived.
Why are these guidelines being introduced?
The safety of our students when they travel to and from the campus is of upmost importance to us. The legislation in Singapore requires children to wear an appropriate restraint when travelling in public or private vehicles, but does not specify what type of restraint is appropriate. We have therefore consulted with travel safety experts and benchmarked that advice against standards in Australia.
Their advice is that our youngest students should only travel on the school bus if they are wearing an age-appropriate child restraint.
What ages do the guidelines apply to?
All students aged 18 months years to up to Prep will be required to be seated in / wear the appropriate child safety restraint.
Children in Year 1 and above may use the recommended booster seat on the school bus, if they wish.
When will the guidelines be in place from?
Many children are in fact already using one of the these restraints. Having introduced the guidelines, we would like to encourage parents to consider purchasing the required restraint as soon as possible and for their child to begin using it.
It is our expectation that all children in Early Years and Prep travelling by school bus will be using one of these restraints by the beginning of Term 1, 2018.
How does this advice compare with that at other schools in Singapore?
These guidelines are being applied at the Australian International School and our sister school, Stamford American International School. The guidelines exceed standards applied by many other School Bus companies in Singapore. However, we strongly believe that this is in the interests of our students as they travel to and from school on the school bus.
Why do parents have to purchase these items? Why can they not be provided by the bus service provider?
The majority of buses that operate on our routes are not owned by our bus service provider. They are contracted providers who offer services on a number of other routes throughout the day. Therefore, it is not practical for them to own and store the required number of restraints for our children.
In addition, to ensure the bus service keeps to time, children will need to be wearing their vest when the bus arrives to pick them up.
The RideSafer vest and Mifold booster seat can be used by children out side of school, when travelling in taxis and on public transport in Singapore, and their use is recognised widely internationally.
The School has purchased it's own set of RideSafer vests for children in Early Years and Prep to use when travelling on bus to excursions.
Can my child use the car seat we already have?
For safety reasons, other brands of car seat will not be able to be used on the School Bus. This is to ensure that the Bus Amah / Aunty has received the appropriate training and is able to effectively install the car seat for each journey.
What will happen to the Car Seat / RideSafer Vest / Mifold booster seat during the school day?
Safety vest and booster seat will be placed in the child’s school bag / cubby when not in use.
Both the vests and the booster seats can be clearly labelled and staff will assist each child to ensure items are safely stored in their cubby during the school day.
Can my child use their safety vest when they graduate Early Years?
Yes, the RideSafer Safety Vest can be used as long as it still fits on your child.
However, they can use the Mifold booster seat when they are in Year 1 and above, should you prefer.
How have the staff been trained to fit the seats / safety vests?
Johnson Transport staff are already familiar with the RideSafer Safety Vest. Similarly, AIS Early Years Teaching and Teaching Assistant staff are familiar with this safety restraint due to its use by a large number of our Early Years children.
In preparation for the school year, all Johnson Transport staff were trained in the use of the recommended car seat, RideSafer vest and the mifold booster seat. This training has been conducted by our safety consultant, in English and Mandarin. Printed training information has also been provided in English, Mandarin and Malay.
Training will be reviewed on a regular basis. Training for all Prep Teachers and Teacher Assistants has commenced.
Will my child need a vest / booster seat for school excursions?
AIS has purchased three class sets (75) of RideSafer Vests for use when our Early Years and Prep students go on excursions outside of the School using school bus transportation.
I am happy with the current school policy and do not wish to purchase a child safety restraint for my child. Can I send my child on the school bus?
No - our new guidelines will be in effect from the beginning of Term 1, 2018. Any Early Years or Prep children travelling on the school bus will have to use one of our approved child restraints.
We have actively worked with an Australian-Certified Child Safety Restraint Technician and have sought advice from an internationally recognised child safety organisation, SafeKids Worldwide, to prepare a set of recommendations for all Early Years and Prep children at AIS.
Their overwhelming advice is that children between the age of 18 months to 2 years of age should only travel in a car seat. Children aged 2 to Prep years should as a minimum while traveling wear a safety vest in order to ensure the adult seatbelt fits their body correctly, Year 1 and above should be using either the safety vest or a booster seat.
These guidelines are therefore being introduced in the interests of safety of our students when they travel to and from the campus, which is of the upmost importance to us all.