Home to School Transport – Mainstream School students
Gloucestershire County Council has the statutory responsibility for the co-ordination of all school offers for those children starting school for the first time in reception, those transferring from an infant to junior school and those transferring to secondary school in year 7.
Some children will be entitled to free home to school transport. Gloucestershire County Council follows the statutory guidance laid down by government for assessing transport entitlement and our policy is on our website and parents can use the link below to read this. We strongly advise parents to read the Home to School Transport policy carefully before they apply for their school.
The eligibility criteria for children being entitled to free transport is:
- Children live either 2 miles(walking distance) from their nearest school (aged under 8)
or
- over 3 miles (for children aged over 8)
Transport assistance is also offered to secondary aged pupils who live in a designated transport area if they live over the three mile criteria. There is also extended provision for parents who are on a low income i.e. in receipt of the maximum working tax credits or claiming free school meals. Parents can find details of this extended provision in our policy on the county council website.
Parents are able to apply for transport assistance after their school place has been allocated and the travel assistance team ask that applications are made by the end of May 2022 (for next academic year) so that the team can ensure that if a child is entitled to free transport assistance, a bus pass is available at the start of the new academic year. Parents can apply via our website.
Parents are also advised to visit the our find a school page, where they can use the mapping system that will tell them their nearest school measured in a straight line (from home to school) and also which schools they are in catchment for and if an address in a designated transport area (for secondary schools).
If families are not entitled under the policy, transport and costs will have to be organised by the families and these can be expensive. Therefore we strongly recommend that if free transport is an important factor in choosing a school parents read the home to school transport policy carefully.
If your circumstances change i.e. you were providing the transport to school and you are then unable to do this the county council will not provide transport outside of the home to school transport policy.
Eligibility is re-assessed regularly so for instance if families were entitled to free home to school transport and they move address transport will be withdrawn if families are no longer eligible under the policy.
It is also important to note that the majority of children are not eligible for free home to school transport.
The travel assistance team are available for advice and guidance and can be contacted on 01452 425390 or email transportmainstream@gloucestershire.gov.uk.