To think this is a good deal and we should take the money

[TastingTheRainbow]

Been struggling to decide this all day so hoping you can help.

My son has special needs and will be starting at a special needs high school in September that's 35 miles away (40 minutes in no traffic).

He is entitled to travel assistance as this is the closest school that could accommodate him and we have not sent him so far away by choice, plus we are a low income family. We thought this would be via a taxi but have had a letter saying if we transport him ourselves the LA will pay us £6800 a year.

That seems an unbelievable amount of money! My quick sums have calculated that with that money we could buy a car (we would need a second car as I take the only one to work), insure it and keep it on the road, cover the petrol cost required for the journey and still have money left over. Plus we then have the convieneve of two cars full time which we really need just can't afford.

If we say no to the money they will organise a taxi. This will be more inflexible however and will pick up at a set time, only waiting for 2 minutes, and can't be changed if he has after school clubs etc. We would then need to collect anyway.

AIBU to think that while it will may be a PITA to do the school run that far every day the money they are offering makes it the better option?

In the interest of fairness I should say it would be my partner not me doing the school run as I work full time and she dosnt. I have said it is her choice to decide however, she just thinks I may be missing the 'catch' somehow.

I have had many an old car. They usually start to cost around 100 a month on average with repairs to keep roadworthy. I think new citroen c1 are about 99/month. Id be looking at that instead tbh.

And you're aware that you won't get the £6800 as a lump sum, yes? Unless things are done differently at your council.

154k on the clock and virtually no repairs is very good going. Without wanting to be the voice of doom, I would be preparing myself for it needing some ££s spending on it soon. That might be another consideration in whether you take the chance to have a second car.

That does sound lucky.

My db's 'bargain' Peugeot has needed £700 spending on it in the last three months. It's a catch 22 situation as he can't sell it without the work being done, then when the works done, he's convinced nothing else can go wrong.

Do you have money to put away from repairs in addition to the other money? It does seem a good deal to me, provided worse case scenario - ie the car is buggered pretty much straight away - you have alternatives in place.

Also, situations like the car being in the garage for a week or so, your partner being too ill to drive - what would you do then?

I've never taken one of those £99pm type deals, but I seem to remember most of them put a limit on the annual mileage and anything above that is charged at quite a high fee. I remember a friend getting caught out by that.

If you took the money, who would take your DS to/from school when your DW was ill or had something else she needed to do? Huw does your other child feel about none ever being in when she go to school or comes in? What about her after school activities, parents meetings etc?

It costs 25p/mile to move my car from A to B. That doesn't include purchase price, depreciation, insurance or MOT or VED, but it does include all the wear and tear costs and petrol.

25p/mile, 39 weeks a yr, 5 days a week, comes out at £6825. So no wonder the LA made that offer, they will end up quids in.

ok take the money but make sure you get rac or aa cover with the hire car option and the travel on option (i dont think its called that but basically if you break down they get you to where you're going and arrange a hire car) yes you can get decent cars for just over a grand BUT it might be worth taking the letter to the bank and asking them to advance you a bit more and pay them back the instant you get the second payment

look into different routes to school ask around there might be a shorter route you dont know about

We had the option of driving my DC to their special school: a 35 min journey. We didn't take them up because I had already been doing it by choice for 6 months (to see my DC settled in to their new school) and I grew to detest it.

It was very, very stressful if my DC was having a bad day. We would have problems at either end and sometimes during the journey too. I'd often cry after drop-off as felt so under stress. Once the taxi was arranged and my DC started going in that, I can't explain how much 'lighter' I felt and how horribly tied I had felt when doing this twice a day. It was a short day too with the commuting time.

However my circs and yours are not necessarily the same. The money incentive was not a massive draw to us at the time. We didn't especially want a second car.

I also had another child who was in car too and needed dropping off at nursery/ school and timings were a bit impossible.

I guess it's only really a decision you can make with your DP but I would suggest a detailed list of pros and cons and lots of 'What if' scenarios in case the worse happens (car breaks down permanently, DP is ill, child refuses to do journey etc etc etc.)

Hope you find the best way forward for you all.

Sorry I forgot to add - I would post your dilemma in SN section too. If there are any pitfalls you are unaware of, someone will let you know of them.

I really would not consider this, potentially 4hrs a day travelling even for a sahm is really unreasonable and will become very draining very quickly, plus a cheap car is very unlikely to last long doing that kind of mileage.

Cheap cars are pot luck - we've had excellent value for most over the years but you have to be realistic and accept that sometimes you get one that's just not going to make it, and, if your budget is that tight, it sounds like too big a risk, as your ds isn't going to be able to hop on a bus for 3 or 4 weeks while you sort it out.

I also think you are really underestimating the commitment of driving to and from school, twice a day, for the next 7 years - that is a HUGE time commitment when there is a perfectly viable alternative.
Don't get hung up on the 2 mins thing - all the drivers and escorts do their best to get everyone to school on time, that's just put there so a family doesn't take the mick.

I wouldn't and I say that as someone whose ds was transported 28 miles there and back for 8 years. It's a huge drain on time or it was on the odd occasions I took ds. Ds's journey was mostly by motorway but it was almost always an hour journey which took 4 hours out of every day. Our LA pay 45p per mile (ds has a mobility car) but it certainly didn't feel as though it was a well paid use of time tbh.
I'd stick with the taxi freeing up dp to work part time and save for a second car that way.

We are looking at doing this for one year and then reviewing the situation, not committed for longer than 1 year if we agree.

DP is happy to do the driving and enjoys it. However it has to be financially viable as we are VERY short of money.

I've estimated that the fuel (based on average fuel prices and the MPG of our current car) would be £2400 for the year. Car insurance would be £870 for the year (DP fairly new driver). Therefore we would have around £3600 of the money left.

I thought buy a £1000 car and we effectively make £2600 a year. I guess not now though. To make it financially worth DPs time we would need the car purchase and upkeep costs to be £3600 max.

This would leave nothing spare but then we have been trying to save / find DP a job to afford the second car anyway as DP has really struggled without one. We would also be saving money on the taxi / bus costs of DP now.

Is £3600 realistic for a reliable car including upkeep, MOT etc? Finance is not an option as on paper our income isn't enough to afford repayments and they wouldn't class this LA payment as income.

Ps. Family can help us buy the car initially and be repaid from the LA money, if it came to that.

Starting to think it's a no go now.

Insanity - one of the big barriers to DP working is the lack of a second car. We live in a tiny village with virtually NO public transport and local jobs are few and far between. Plus she would be working for minimum wage. This money isn't classed as income, dosnt affect housing benefit etc. isn't taxed and is more than she would earn in a part time job. Hence it seemed so tempting. We would use the money for the car but realistic we needed that regardless.

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Sorry all, its playing up for me, and I have typed out 2 posts which did not post so I was just checking...
Anyway...
What's the impact for your son between going in a taxi or being driven by your partner?

Is DP really happy to do that drive twice a day?

Does she want to be a SAHM or has she ended up being one due to finances / DS's needs etc?

Seems the money is effectively paying for a car, insurance, petrol and someone (not very much) to drive up to 4 hours a day but it gives you a 2nd car which would be of general benefit to the family. Also presuming the school is in a more urban area there may be a chance of a job near the school.

If it would cost the council more like £12k for taxis, could you haggle with them?

Actually, it isn't a very good offer. You are entitled to be paid mileage - i.e. something that covers petrol, insurance, road tax, MOTs, servicing, and general wear and tear. The Inland Revenue allows for mileage at 45p per mile, and I suspect if you had a good google around the council's website you would find that they pay something like that rate to councillors and employees.

So work that out: you would be doing 140 miles a day, 5 days a week, for 38 weeks a year: multiply that by £0.45, it equals £11,970 per year. Even if you take the mileage rate down to 30p, the total is £7980.

They are also not allowed to be that inflexible with the taxi. They have a duty by law to make reasonable adjustments for disability, and that includes catering for the fact that children with SEN may have difficulty being ready at a precise set time.

I think the council is conning you. Tell them that you will drive him if you get mileage at a realistic rate, and otherwise you'll opt for the taxi. They will still be saving money.

My £1500 car, bought five years ago as an 8yr old car, has done a 220 each way journey to work and back four times a month. It's still going strong and hasn't had any major or minor issues so far. I'd think that you can easily do what you're planning to do on that budget.

I guess it will be hard for those that usually buy new cars to get their heads round.

Yes DP is happy to do it. She's a SAHM because she wants to plus was easier for DS's needs. Although now at high school she was discussing working. The school is in an urban area yes I hadn't thought of that, looking for a job local to the school would be ideal. It's also motorway all the way there, school litterally minutes from the junction so I'm told quite an easy drive (by DP).

We've pretty much decided to refuse the money now to be honest.

DP has said it would be worth her time JUST to get the second car and maintain it because it's driving her insane not having one. Nearest supermarket is 20 mins drive and when I'm working all week she has to try and get a lift or use a taxi, as an example of how much she wants the second car, when I'm at work she feels virtually stuck in the house.

That was the main incentive really, she gets a car to make her life much easier and the LA money pays for it because we litterally cannot afford to run a second car without it. It's a push just running my car due to the insurance cost but I can't get to work without it.

Now I'm just scared it's too big a risk. Having been lucky with my first and only car I naively assumed a £1000 car would be adequate but not many people agree. Have been looking at a few £3000 cars and the insurance makes it not possible. Oh well it was worth a try.

I'm public sector. If I were to buy a car through their scheme then tax would be offset somehow. (I haven't) however mileage would be 10p a mile. The 45p is to cover wear and tear. I wouldn't go down the route of haggling if they are willing to give you cash to cover the expense of commute.
If you're happy with the commute then it does seem like a way to get a car and make life easier. Bare in mind you will use it more than just the school runs so your petrol costs will end up higher.

I think without the one year option it would be a no go, knowing that if it doesn't work out you can revert to a taxi, makes it far more viable. It's only 30 weeks. Even if she hates it, at the end of the year you'll have the second car you need for her to get part time work.

I'd spend a bigger part of the £3600 on the newest, smallest car you can and try it for the year. If repairs do unfortunately go over that budget then can you borrow from family again until the following years expenses or next years part time job? Only do this if you are certain that you will pay them back.