Applying for school travel assistance

Special educational needs travel assistance

Our Travel Co-ordination Unit is responsible for travel assistance between home and school for children and young people with special educational needs or disabilities (SEND).

We will provide a broad and flexible range of assistance options and promote independent travel where we can.

Only our Travel Co-ordination Unit deals with SEND applications.

Eligibility

Your child may be eligible to receive travel assistance if they are 16 years old or under and they have an education, health and care (EHC) plan and:

• the school named in the EHC plan (part I) is the nearest suitable school as decided by the council
• the school is beyond the walking distance stated in our policy

and

• they have a condition where they can't reasonably be expected to walk (and this is supported by appropriate medical or specialist advice)
  or
• either you or your partner are disabled, so that you can't accompany your child to school

After the age of 16 or completion of year 11 (whichever is later), this assistance ends and you need to apply for post-16 travel assistance.

Full guidance is provided in our Home to school transport and travel assistance policy.

Apply

Applications need to be submitted to us by 11:59pm on the 3rd Friday in May. Due to the volume of applications we receive, we can't guarantee assistance will be put in place in time for the new school year for any applications received after this date. Late applications are assessed in chronological order, which means they are processed on a first-come, first-served basis.

Sometimes, we get applications late in the school year, but this may not give us enough time to arrange suitable transport before the school year comes to an end. Exceptional circumstances will be looked at on a case-by-case basis. Email [email protected] for advice.

What happens after you apply for transport

• We will acknowledge receipt of your application
• If we have all the necessary information, a decision will be made within 30 working days
• If any information is missing, this may delay the process - we will contact you if we need anything further

Application deadlines for new academic years

• For applications submitted before the May deadline, transport will be in place for the start of the new academic year in September
• For applications submitted after the May deadline, transport is not guaranteed to be in place until October

Appeal

If you application is refused, you can appeal online.

Changing school

If you have received an EHC plan which names a new school in part I, you must submit a new application to us.

If you're child is moving from primary to secondary school, but it's at the same school, you still need to submit a new application.

Change of address

Tell us about a change of address if your child is getting travel assistance.

Make sure the EHC team is also notified so that the EHC plan can be updated.

Last updated 25 July 2025