- 42 - 126. Finally, according to the Government, the mission of a public education system does not extend to the provision of school catering or transport. The Government adds that anyone disagreeing with the meal charges may challenge them in the administrative courts, as well as the differences in school transport fees. B – Assessment of the Committee 127. First, the Committee observes that Médecins du Monde invokes Article 17 as a whole. Having examined the submissions, the Committee considers that the allegations raised by Médecins du Monde relate, more precisely, to Article 17§2 (Free primary and secondary education and regular attendance at school). 128. The Committee considers access to education as crucial for every child's life and development. The denial of access to education will exacerbate the vulnerability of an unlawfully present child. Therefore, children, whatever their residence status, come within the personal scope of Article 17§2. Furthermore, the Committee considers that a child, from whom access to education has been denied, sustains consequences thereof in his or her life. The Committee, therefore, holds that states parties are required, under Article 17§2 of the Charter, to ensure that children unlawfully present in their territory have effective access to education in keeping with any other child (Statement of interpretation on Article 17§2, General Introduction, Conclusions 2011, §10). 129. The Committee also recalls that Article 17 as a whole requires states to establish and maintain an educational system that is both accessible and effective (see Conclusions 2003, France, Article 17§1 which provides explanatory observations on the whole Article 17 after its revision with the entry into force of the Revised European Social Charter). 130. The Committee notes that, on many aspects, the Government refers to the situation concerning travellers’ children, which is not of relevance with regard to the present case concerning Roma children of Romanian and Bulgarian origin. The legal texts referred to by the Government seem, however, to be in conformity with the requirement of the Charter. The Committee underlines nevertheless that they have not been implemented in a satisfactory manner, in particular concerning the effective access to education for Roma children of Romanian and Bulgarian origin, as demonstrated by various studies, such as the report of February 2010 by Romeurope, titled “La nonscolarisation en France des enfants roms migrants”, decision No. MLD/2012-33 by the Défenseur des droits and several decisions of the French Equal Opportunities and AntiDiscrimination Commission (HALDE), in particular the decisions No. 2009-233 and No. 2009-372.