Home to School Transport Policy 2023-2024
This document sets out Slough Borough Council’s Home to School/College Travel Assistance Policy and describes how the Council fulfils its duties and exercises its discretionary powers under the Education Act 1996. The policy explains the criteria for eligibility for travel assistance for pupils to their school for children of compulsory school age (5-16 years old) and for young people aged 16 to 19 and 19 to 25. It describes how parents and carers can apply for travel assistance and how decisions are made. It sets out how parents and carers may appeal against decisions that they believe do not comply with this policy.
Policy Statement
Slough Borough Council (the Council) is committed to ensuring that all pupils have a great start to life, are safe and healthy and have access to high quality education so that they are able to achieve their full potential. The Children and Families Act 2014 commits partners to work together to develop services which strengthen the abilities and resilience of children and their families to be independent.
The Council is also committed to meeting the educational needs of as many children and young people as possible within local schools. In many cases, this will mean that pupils can walk or cycle to school with their parents or carers. This policy sets out how we will help the small number of pupils who find it difficult to travel to school without some assistance.
The Council will continue to deliver our statutory responsibilities to meet the travel needs of children and young people, enabling them to access their place of education. This support will be targeted at those children and young people who have significant additional needs or are deemed extremely vulnerable.
We want to support parents and carers to fulfil their responsibility to ensure their school-aged children attend school regularly and to make any necessary arrangements to ensure that they attend school. Those children and young people not in receipt of travel assistance from the Council can use a wide range of forms of travel in Slough, accompanied as necessary, including bus, train, concessionary fares, walking and cycling. We also want to support schools to promote safe routes to school and safe travel skills through their regular curriculum.
The Council has a duty under s.508A of the Education Act 1996 to promote the use of sustainable travel and transport. This requires the Council to have a strategy to develop sustainable travel and transport infrastructure and to promote these modes of travel.
Aims and Objectives
The council has the following aims and objectives when assessing transport / travel support:
- social integration of children and young people whatever their needs
- support and develop Independence and resilience for children and young people with SEND and their families
- environmentally sustainable travel
- efficient use of public resources.