AN EAST Ayrshire councillor has put forward an alternative suggestion to deal with the plan to end subsidised school transport in the area.

Conservative councillor John McFadzean offered up a left-field suggestion as part of the discussion on subsidised school transport – cheap waterproof jackets.

Cllr McFadzean described coats of the type "you see all the people in New York wearing".

He made the suggestion as East Ayrshire Council’s cabinet discussed the removal of subsidised school transport and the encouragement of active travel.

READ MORE: Council pull the plug on 'unsustainable' subsidised school transport

East Ayrshire Council (EAC) made the decision to scrap the aided travel, in a move that will aim to save the local authority in the region of £600,000, based on current costs.

Cllr McFadzean said: “Obviously East Ayrshire is a big authority with big buying power.

"If we also looked into any possibility of obtaining very good lightweight rain proof jackets and bits and pieces that could be handy for walking to school.”

He said that they could be offered to pupils "at cost".

However, he admitted that "fashion" could impact on uptake.

He said: “I don’t know whether they would take it or not, people are so individual with fashion today, but we have plenty of rain at certain times so some of these sort of very lightweight, very long waterproof jackets you see all the people in New York wearing."

Education chief Linda Mcaulay-Griffiths responded: “From a primary school perspective, most offer a branded rain jacket but again in terms of keeping with the cost of living, we leave that choice with parents as to whether they opt for the branded piece.

“In respect of secondary, I think given the age and stage of pupils, they are much more likely to want to have their own thing.

“The schools could look at that if it was something that they wanted to but given the fashion conscious teenagers that we’ve got out there, whilst I think that the sentiment absolutely appropriate and we don’t want anyone getting wet on their walk to school, I think we aren’t probably going to go down that kind of route.”