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Who is eligible for Free Home to School Transport?
Pupils are eligible if they are between the ages of 5 and 16 – from reception up to and including Year 11. To qualify for free home to school transport a child must attend their nearest suitable state funded or catchment school (including Welsh Medium/Denominational) and that school must be over the MCC distance criteria). Free home to school transport will not be provided unless a learner meets both criteria. The distance criteria are 2 miles or more for Primary School aged children and 3 miles or more for Secondary School aged children. Transport for 4-year olds is discretionary and will only be provided if a learner is attending primary school and the parent confirms in writing that a driver and or passenger assistant is authorised to assist their child with the use of seat belts.
How is the distance calculated?
The distance is measured electronically, which uses the shortest route between the boundaries of your home address (i.e. the bottom of your path or driveway) and the main entrance to the school.
If my child is eligible for free home to school transport – where will he/she be collected from?
It may not be for all learners to be collected from their home address and therefore, it will be necessary for parents to take and collect their children from designated pick up and drop off points. Every effort will be made to keep this distance as short as possible and it should not exceed one mile under normal circumstances.
What is an unavailable walking route?
Free transport may be provided where the Authority is satisfied that the All unavailable walking routes are assessed based on the Learner Travel Measure and GB Road Safety Guidance. Walking route assessments will be undertaken by the Councils Road Safety Officer or other suitably qualified person who will consider both the traffic and social risk factors. When undertaking the assessments, it will be assumed that an adult will accompany all primary aged children.
If my child has more than one home, will travel assistance be given to both?
Where learners have more than one residence, they will be able to apply for home to school transport for up to two homes which are the nearest to their school. They will still need to meet the eligibility criteria in terms of distance, age and ability as outlined above. Evidence of the dual residency will be required from both parents.
If I move home to an address outside the catchment area school, will free transport be provided?
No. If you move home to an address outside the catchment area school, your child will not be provided with free transport, unless the child is in year 10 or 11 of study (critical year) and there are existing contract services available.
Will expenses incurred whilst travelling to and from school be reimbursed?
No. Expenses incurred whilst travelling to and from school are not reimbursed.
Is there a maximum length of a journey?
The Authority endeavours to keep journey times to a minimum. Unfortunately, given the rural environment in Monmouthshire, some journeys may exceed one hour and particularly if you are attending a denominational or Welsh Medium school outside of the area.
What type of transport assistance is available?
The Authority decides on the most suitable transport arrangements, bearing in mind all relevant factors, including cost. Depending on individual circumstances, transport is arranged usually by contract bus, service bus or taxi, though sometimes other individual arrangements may be made. The authority may offer a Personal Transport Budget in some circumstances. Transport is provided at the beginning and end of the school day, and is not provided for out-of-hours or extra curricular activities including breakfast and after school clubs.
Can children who do not qualify for free school transport purchase spare seats on school buses?
Those learners that are not eligible for free transport are able to apply for concessionary travel. Concessionary seats will be awarded if a vacant seat exists, there is no financial implication to the Council, no disruption to the transport route and the learner is taken to a specified pick up and drop off point as determined by the transport provider. Concessionary seats are not guaranteed to be awarded from the start of the academic year; however, all learners will be notified if a seat is available within 10 working days of the commencement of the academic year. If an application is made during the academic year, the applicant will be notified if a seat is available within 10 working days.
It is the parent’s responsibility to ensure that the child/children are transported to and from school whilst their application is being considered. The pickup and drop off point may be more than a mile from the learner’s home but no further than 1.5 miles for primary aged learners and 2 miles for secondary. Learners will not be authorised to use a concessionary placement until officially confirmed in writing by the Commissioning Team. Applications for Post 16 learners will take priority for concessionary seats. If vacant seats remain, concessionary seats will be awarded based on when the application form was received. For one or more applications received on the same date, the learner whose home address measures the furthest walking distance to the educational establishment will take precedence. On occasions it may be necessary to withdraw a concessionary seat, if the seat is withdrawn then we will provide 10 working days’ notice and parents will be required to make alternative arrangements.
Pupils allocated a concessionary seat midway through a term will be charged per week for the number of weeks remaining in that term. Payment may be paid in monthly instalments via a standing order by contacting the Sundry Debtor Team upon receiving an invoice. Applications for concessionary transport will not be considered for learners who are in arrears for previous concessionary transport.
When the arrears are cleared the learner will then become eligible for concessionary travel if a seat is available. Refunds will be payable from the date that the Commissioning Team receive written confirmation from the parent that they wish to cancel their child’s seat. Retrospective refunds will not be made.
Will transport be provided to and from Independent Schools?
No. Free transport is not provided for pupils attending Independent Schools.
What happens if a child is disruptive on the provided transport?
The safety of all learners travelling on home to school transport is paramount. If a learner misbehaves, the Council reserves the right to withdraw the transport provision. Whenever the Commissioning Team is made aware of an incident on home to school transport they will liaise with schools and the Education Directorate to investigate the incident.
Where necessary warning letters and or email correspondence will be sent to the parents of learners who misbehave, cause damage to a vehicle, threaten or cause injury to passengers or drivers / passenger assistants or behave in such a way that might jeopardise safety. Home to school transport may be withdrawn from the learner on a temporary or permanent basis in accordance with the Learner Travel Operational Guidance. The Council also reserves the right to either suspend or cancel transport for learners where drivers or passenger assistants have received verbal abuse or been physically assaulted by parents or guardians. In such cases the victims will be encouraged to report such actions to the police and any other necessary authorities. Where transport is withdrawn, parents are responsible for ensuring that their child gets to school.
What do I do if I have a concern or complaint about the school transport service?
Only complaints received in writing from parents or learners will be investigated by the Council. Complaints should be made to: passengertransportunit@monmouthshire.gov.uk The Commissioning Unit will acknowledge the complaint within 5 working days and respond within 10 working days. There may be occasions where we will need to take longer than 10 working days and we will advise you when this happens and provide a timescale as to when you will receive a response. If a complaint is upheld, appropriate steps will be taken to remedy the issue as soon as is practicable.
We advise that these are the current policies and they are reviewed on an annual basis, any changes to the policy will be advised.