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TRANSPORT
What does a ‘suitable’ school
mean?
How can I find out whether
a school is within statutory walking distance of my
home?
I don’t think that
the school close to my home is really suitable because
it is co-educational, and I would prefer to send my
daughter/son to an all-girls’/’boys’ school.
Can my daughter/son qualify for transport assistance
to the nearest all-girls’/boys’ school
which is 5 miles away?
Is there any possibility
of my child being granted transport assistance even
though he has no entitlement under the policy?
Does transport assistance
cover the whole of the journey from home to school?
My child is not old enough
to be admitted to Year 1 in September, but I hope that
she will be admitted to a reception class or a nursery
class. Can she qualify for transport assistance?
Who
is entitled to Home to school transport?
Any child who resides over 2 miles from
their nearest suitable Primary School or 3 miles
from their nearest suitable Post primary within
the defined categories. See Home to School Transport
policy
Where is the measurement taken from?
The measurement is taken from the gate of the permanent home address
to the nearest gate of the school to be attended. BACK TOP
Who
is responsible for my child’s transport?
The Board is responsible for assisting parents with the cost of travel
in line with Department of Education Guidelines. It is a parental responsibility
to ensure that there is transport already available to or in the vicinity
of the school to be attended. Boards are not required to provide additional
services where the cost of such provision would result in unreasonable
public expenditure. BACK TOP
Who
is responsible for getting my child to the bus
stop?
It is a parental responsibility to ensure that children are supervised. BACK TOP
Am
I entitled to door to door transport?
No.
Only children with severe learning difficulties are entitled to door
to door transport as part of their Statement of Special Educational Needs
Children with moderate learning difficulties or those attending mainstream
schools may be required to make their own way to the pick up/drop off
point. BACK TOP
How
far would my child be expected to travel to a
pick up/drop off point?
For children with moderate learning difficulties, advice would be sought
from the Statementing Officer.
Mainstream pupils are required to travel up to the statutory distance
before consideration is given to additional provision. BACK TOP
My
child has a medical condition, would he/she be
entitled to transport even though I live within
two/three miles of the nearest suitable school?
Yes provided your child attends the nearest suitable school and a Clinical
Medical Officer recommends transport on medical grounds. BACK TOP
I
did not attempt to enrol my child in the nearest
suitable school but he/she has a medical condition.
Would I be entitled to transport?
No, If your child attends a more distant school the Board may consider
payment of a travel allowance to the nearest suitable school. BACK TOP
How
do I find out if I am eligible for transport?
Advice may be sought from the Transport Unit of the Board. No Formal
decision will be made until an application form has been submitted. Information
is also included in Board publications issued to all parents when children
are being enrolled or transferring to post primary schools. BACK TOP
Where
can I get an application form?
Primary application forms are available at your local Primary School.
Post
Primary application forms are forwarded to you with your transfer
documentation.
The Transport Unit will also send out applications on request. BACK TOP
I
have moved house. Am I still entitled to transport
assistance?
If there is a suitable school within 2/3 miles from your home you must
attempt to gain admission to that school and be refused a place before
becoming eligible for assistance to a school over the statutory distance.
The Board will require written confirmation from all schools within the
statutory distance Pupils who change address in the penultimate or final
year of their primary education will be granted transport assistance
to the school they attend provided there is a suitable transport service
operating form their new address and that the address is over 2 miles.
Pupils who change address during the 2 year period leading up to GCSE
will be granted transport assistance to the school they attend provided
there is a suitable transport service operating from their new address
and that the address is 3 miles distant. BACK TOP
Would
I be eligible for transport from my childminder’s
address?
Transport is provided from the permanent home address to the school attended.
If there is transport available and the Board can assist at no additional
cost a concessionary place may be granted provided that the child is
attending its nearest suitable school and the childminder’s home
is on the existing bus route. BACK TOP
We
are moving to temporary accommodation which is
over the statutory distance to my child’s
school. Am I eligible for assistance?
Each case is considered on an individual basis. Application should be
made in writing to the Transport Officer. BACK TOP
What
does a ‘suitable’ school mean?
In the case of a primary school, ‘suitability’ depends on
whether a school is categorised as ‘Controlled’, or ‘Catholic
Maintained’ or ‘Other Maintained’, or ‘Integrated’ or ‘Irish
Medium’. This means, for example, that if your child is admitted
to a Controlled school outside the statutory walking distance, entitlement
to transport will depend on whether or not there are any other schools
in the Controlled category within two miles of your home which could
have admitted your child.
The category of each primary school is included in the school’s
entry in the Board’s booklet ‘Booklet for Parents Enrolment
to Primary schools. An edition of this booklet is published for each
District council area, and copies are available from primary schools,
Board Offices and public libraries.
The above also relates to Post Primary schools taking regard of the distance
criteria. BACK TOP
How
can I find out whether a school is within statutory
walking distance of my home?
The Board’s Transport Officers will be willing to advise you whether
a school is within statutory walking distance of your home. You can also
measure the distance by car but it should be noted that a measurement
by car does not always reflect an accurate walking distance. BACK TOP
I don’t
think that the school close to my home is really
suitable because it is co-educational, and I
would prefer to send my daughter/son to an all-girls’/’boys’ school.
Can my daughter/son qualify for transport assistance
to the nearest all-girls’/boys’ school
which is 5 miles away?
The co-educational or single sex nature of a school cannot be taken into
account by the Board in deciding whether a school is ‘suitable’ or
not. For example, a pupil who is admitted to a single sex school outside
statutory walking distance will not qualify for transport assistance
if the pupil could have been admitted to a co-educational school within
statutory walking distance. BACK TOP
Is
there any possibility of my child being granted
transport assistance even though he has no entitlement
under the policy?
Where a service is provided by the Board’s own transport fleet
and seats remain vacant after all pupils who have an entitlement to transport
under the revised policy have been accommodated, seats may be offered
to other pupils on a concessionary basis provided that pupils are attending
their nearest suitable school.
Concessionary seats may be withdrawn at any time, for example if there
is an increase in the numbers of pupils with an entitlement to transport
assistance or if there is a need to re-organise services.
The Board may at a future stage be required to make a charge for concessionary
seats. BACK TOP
Does
transport assistance cover the whole of the journey
from home to school?
The Board is not obliged to assist with travel for the whole of a journey,
provided that the portion of the journey for which transport is not provided
does not exceed 2/ 3 miles. While the Board tries to make services as
convenient as possible for pupils it has a responsibility to keep transport
costs under tight control in order to protect funding for school budgets. BACK TOP
My
child is not old enough to be admitted to Year
1 in September, but I hope that she will be admitted
to a reception class or a nursery class. Can
she qualify for transport assistance?
No. Pupils under compulsory school age i.e. under the age of four years
and two months prior to 1st September in any given school year, who attend
a reception class or a nursery class, are not entitled to transport assistance. BACK TOP
REMEMBER
To
be eligible for Transport Assistance to a school
outside statutory walking distance, application
for admission must first of all be made to all
suitable schools which are within statutory walking
distance before a preference is expressed for the
more distant school.
You are strongly advised to take this into account when nominating your
preferences for Primary Schools on your child’s Application Form
for Admission to Primary School.
ADVICE
AND FURTHER INFORMATION MAY BE OBTAINED FROM:
The Transport Office
South Eastern Education and Library Board Grahamsbridge Road Dundonald
BELFAST
BT16 2HS
Telephone: 028 90 566200
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