SEND travel assistance
The information on this page is part of the 'local offer' for children and young people with special educational needs
Parents and carers are responsible for ensuring their child attend school. This may include making or assisting with travel arrangements to and from school and/or accompanying their child.
Not all children and young people with an EHC Plan will need or receive travel assistance from the Council, and the completion of an EHC Plan does not confer an automatic entitlement to the provision of travel assistance by the Council.
To be eligible, a child or young person must:
- be aged 5 to 16 (compulsory school-age)
- go to their nearest qualifying school (a school with places available that provides education appropriate to the age, ability and aptitude of the child, and any special educational needs that the child may have) and live further than the statutory walking distance from their school
Children/young people who fall into one of the following categories are required to re-apply for travel assistance if they continue to meet the eligibility criteria for the 2024/25 academic year:
- moving from Nursery to Reception class
- transferring from Primary to Secondary school (even if staying within the same school)
- transferring from Secondary to Sixth Form or College (even if staying in the same school)
- any young person over the age of 16 or will be 16 years old as of the 1 September 2024
- change in circumstances/needs e.g. you have or are moving home, your child is changing School/College destination address, your child's needs change
- you currently receive discretionary travel assistance
- cases that are under review by the travel commissioning assistance team
If your child/young person does not fall into one of these categories, continues to meet the eligibility criteria and you have not received a letter from the Travel Assistance Commissioning Team advising you to re-apply, the travel assistance offer will continue until there is either a change in circumstance or your child/young person falls into one of the categories above.
For more information visit Bexley Local Offer.
Travel assistance for over 16's
The Council introduced a contribution charge of £400 for students in Post 16 education placements and in receipt of Post 16 Travel Assistance for the start of the 2019/20 academic year. Those student’s changing course or where circumstances change that require a re-application will also need to pay the contribution charge.
Payment of the charge can be:
- one payment of £400 paid via credit/debit card or
- monthly payment of £36.37 paid via Direct Debit
Once you are assessed we will write to you to request payment. Please ensure you do not make any payment prior to our request.
Please note that (if eligible) travel arrangements will only be confirmed once payment has been received by the Council and failure to make payment as per the agreed payment plan will result in travel assistance being withdrawn.
Alternative and more cost-effective support may be available directly from schools, colleges and operators.
Information on how to access this support can be found on the Bexley Local Offer website.
Do you qualify?
Please consider the following before completing an application. The student:
- is a resident in the London Borough of Bexley
- is over 16 but under 19 as from 31 August 2020, (or in some cases 25 if they have complex learning difficulties and/or disabilities (LDD)
- attends the nearest suitable education establishment for their chosen study programme
- is over 3 miles walking distance from their registered home address to their place of education
- has special educational needs or disabilities, which limit their mobility or ability to use public transport and other means of travel
- has explored other forms of travel assistance support and identified as unavailable/unsuitable
- has exceptional circumstances relating to the student and family that need to be taken into consideration
Appealing travel assistance
To appeal against the type of travel assistance you have been offered by the local authority, you can use the form below.
Please complete this form if:
- you disagree with the type of travel assistance offered by the Local Authority and wish for us to reconsider the offer
- you have applied for travel assistance to school/college and have received a formal refusal letter or email and would like to appeal the decision and proceed to the stage one appeal process
- you disagree with the stage one appeal decision you have received and would like to proceed to the stage two appeal process