School travel assistance

Eligibility

We use the criteria in our travel assistance policies to decide whether the child or young person may be entitled to council-provided travel assistance.

When making the decision we will assess:

  • the pupil’s specific needs
  • the parents or carers’ legal responsibility to make sure their child attends school
  • the suitability of the school, as defined in the guidance
  • our overall duty to ensure an efficient use of council resources

If you have an EHCP:

Having an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) does not automatically mean that a child or young person is eligible for school travel assistance.

You may decide to send your child or young person to a school or college that is further away than one that we have deemed suitable and available to meet the needs of the child. In these cases, parents or carers will be expected to fund and make their own travel arrangements.

For children aged 5 to 16

A child is eligible if they either:

  • live within the statutory walking distance, but could not be reasonably be expected to walk or use public transport, even if accompanied, because of a special educational need, disability or mobility issue
  • cannot reasonably be expected to walk because the nature of the route is deemed unsafe (the general expectation is that a child will be accompanied by a parent or carer where necessary, unless there is nobody for whom it would be reasonable to expect to accompany the child)
  • need to travel beyond the statutory walking distance to attend their nearest suitable school (two miles for pupils below the age of 8 and three miles for pupils aged 8 and over)
  • are from a low-income family and where the walking distance falls within the guidance (two to six miles)

Full policy

We set out the arrangements for meeting our statutory duty for eligible children aged 5 to 16 in our travel assistance policy.

You should read through the full policy. If after reading it you feel you may be eligible for assistance, you can make an application.

For young people aged over 16 and adults aged 19 to 25 with an EHCP

We consider eligibility for travel assistance for young people aged over 16 against the following criteria:

  • The young person is aged 16 to 25 and is attending further education at a school, college or a training provider.
  • The course is deemed suitable and will provide an educational benefit to the young person and has been agreed by the council.
  • The journey is impracticable or dangerous to take to an educational establishment of less than three miles.
  • Consideration of the young person's EHCP.

Full policy

We set out the arrangements for meeting our statutory duty for eligible young people aged over 16 in our travel assistance policy.

You should read through the full policy. If after reading it you feel you may be eligible for assistance, you can make an application.

16 to 19 Bursary Fund

Young people aged 16 to 19 may be eligible for a bursary fund. This is designed to help 16, 17 and 18-year-old young people who struggle with the costs of full-time education or training.

You can read further details about the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund on GOV.UK or contact your educational placement. 

Rate this page