Important travel assistance updates

A PTB lets you make your own flexible travel arrangements to school/college, using a calculated amount of travel allowance from the Council.

The allowance can be used towards driving your own vehicle, arranging for family/friends or a shared travel service to help transport your child, to purchase a travel pass, or to help towards childcare arrangements for other siblings.

If your child is eligible for travel assistance and you would like to receive a PTB, please contact the team using our online enquiry form.

If the Council has offered you a taxi or minibus, the travel arrangements will be confirmed via a two-step process:

1. You will receive an email with a notification from gov.uk to access a letter detailing your transport provider.
2. The transport provider will contact you in advance to confirm the start date, pick-up and drop-off time.

Best practice suggests operators should offer parents and carers a "Meet and Greet" service, to enable the pupil to see the transport being provided and meet their new transport team. However, we know that in some circumstances this may not be possible, particularly if we need to add a child or young person to an existing route that may change the setup of the arrangements.

Transport providers should offer a 'Meet and Greet' service for parents and carers. This allows the pupil see the transport and meet the new transport team. Sometimes this isn't possible, especially if we need to add a child or young person to an existing route, which might change the setup.

We are currently reviewing a number of routes across the County that are deemed unsafe. This involves reassessing eligibility for travel assistance in some circumstances, if there are any changes to route safety, we will write to all families affected. Any review of an unsafe route will be looked at in line with National Road Safety Guidance.

If you need travel help with a taxi or minibus, you or your parent/carer will need to help pay towards the costs. If you or your family are experiencing financial difficulty, we may delay, reduce, or cancel the charge for students over 16.

We have raised the contribution this year, at a time of real challenge for public finances and higher costs for all, we understand that families are struggling. The new rates for 2023 to 2024 are higher than last year, but still lower than other nearby authorities.

Our new post-16 travel allowance has been in place since 2022 and if you choose to accept this, you will not be required to pay the contribution.

The contribution rates for the academic year 2024 to 2025 are as follows:

• £659.01 for students whose families receive maximum Working Tax Credit and/or who continue to meet the eligibility criteria for Free School Meals; students in care; care leavers; those on Income Support/Universal Credit in their own right; disabled young people who receive Employment Support Allowance/Universal Credit and either Disability Living Allowance or Personal Independence Payment in their name; or
• £908.85 for all other students.

For existing passengers who use contracted transport, where possible, transport will be the same or similar. There may be occasions where we will need to change a service, or where arrangements may change.

Reasons why we may need to make a change include:

• More children and young people being offered transport to a specific education setting and are added to a specific vehicle/route.
• The operator of a current route changes.
• The type of vehicle.
• A journey time is increased due to more children in a vehicle.
• The home pick-up and drop-off times.

For new applicants and those with changing travel arrangements, we will let you know the details as soon as possible so you can prepare. We will aim to give you the information two weeks before the transport starts.

According to national guidelines, travel assistance for eligible children is usually available from the first term after their 5th birthday, when they reach compulsory school age. However, as stated in Surrey's Travel Assistance Policy, travel assistance may be considered for children under 5 in exceptional circumstances. Exceptional circumstances for home to school travel assistance include situations where a child cannot get to school without help.

These may include:

• You or your child having a medical condition or disability, which prevents safe travel to school.
• Unforeseen accidents or medical procedures that may stop you from transporting your child as usual.
• Where the walking route to school being unsafe for a child to use, when accompanied by an adult.
• Specific family difficulties or needs that mean you are unable to transport your child safely to their school.

If you believe you have circumstances where travel assistance is necessary, you can apply online.

Please include all relevant information and evidence with your application. Each application for exceptional circumstances is reviewed individually and requires supporting evidence for a decision to be made.

In Surrey, there has been an increase in applications for travel assistance and a decrease in available providers. This trend is also seen nationally, with councils spending more on home to school transport. To manage these pressures, we are now taking a more robust approach in assessing applications for children under 5 years.

In-line with Surrey's Travel Assistance Policy, there is no legal requirement for the Council to provide travel arrangements for children under 5. We are applying this policy consistently and fairly to all applications. We are dedicated to helping children and young people in Surrey who are most in need of travel support to access their education. We will continue to use our discretionary powers to provide travel assistance for children aged 4 entering reception year at primary school if exceptional circumstances are shown. However, we must balance this with our duty to use our funds effectively for those most in need.

If your application has been refused, you can appeal the decision. When submitting a stage one appeal, the following will not normally be considered exceptional circumstances:

• Parent/carers' work or other commitments.
• Siblings attending other schools.
• An address other than the home address, including a childminder's address.
• Ad hoc visits to other establishments or locations.
• Out of hours clubs, such as breakfast clubs, or after school activities.