Free school transport

[Sheldonsheher]

Curious someone from my daughter’s class gets free school bus to and from school. They live 1.5 miles down a country road so not that far buy not safe to walk. Does this really qualify you for council transport. I mean if you choose to live somewhere unsuitable for a child to walk should you not have to drive them yourself. Everyone else including myself have to do the school run every day and surely this is something the parents should be responsible for when they choose where they are going to live.

Yes in my area if there is no safe walking route the council must provide transport. (Or pay for pavements).
Where i live all the kids get on the school mini bus to travel the 1 mile through country lanes....saves 12 parents each driving their child as it is not safe to walk (60mph riD no pavements).

I don't know ask your LA what the criteria is for getting free school transport?

@Sheldonsheher how does this child being provided with a safe journey to school detrimentally affect you?

In my area you need to live 3 miles away from the school and receive free school meals.

Do please tell us what makes this your business, OP.

Why are you curious if you know the reason?

This. A child that is being supported in getting to school safely is a good thing, not something to be resentful over 😕.

Free school transport
Children of compulsory school age qualify for free school transport if they go to their nearest suitable school and any of the following apply:

the school is more than 2 miles away and the child is under 8

The school is more than 3 miles away and the child is 8 or over

There’s no safe walking route between their home and school

they cannot walk there because of their special educational needs or disabilities or a mobility problem

I really think it has absolutely nothing to do with you

In rural areas yes, no safe walking route means you need to be provided with transportation. Of course kids live in such locations eg farmers!

If there is no safe walking route, or it’s over statutory maximum distance the council provides transport. I live rurally so my kids get a minibuses. It’s about twenty miles between local primary and highschool in opposite directions from my house with no public transport. Some kids are a good hour and a half - two hours plus each way on school buses as that’s the catchment highschool. Scotland so some big distances to travel. It used to be kids would board Mon-Fri but now they commute. They still have kids boarding on the islands due to ferry timetables not matching up with school hours.

I live rurally and my DD goes to our catchment secondary. It is more than 3 miles away so she gets free transport - DS will too when he starts there. Pretty sure it’s the same or a similar rule in other parts of the country. Not sure what you’re so upset about

YABU and nosy.
Its not your business

Not a safe walk is a reason fir a free bus pass where I live.

No pavement counts as an unsafe route, they do also count footpaths through fields as safe routes in the county I live. We’re more than 3 miles so they get a bus. School transport costs rural counties a fortune as more than half can be bussed into normal secondary schools and almost all of sen into special schools

Well it’s the same distance as myself and most parents and tbh I would not let my children walk as they have to cross a major road without traffic calming. I guess it’s just the lifestyle choice element I mean you chose to live down a rural lane and you have a car. Everyone else has to do the school run but you don’t. you don’t really have to live there it’s a lifestyle choice to live semi rural outside the town.

I was just surprised I didn’t know free school transport is a thing. It’s almost worth living down a country lane just to get to avoid the school run! 😂

Also it’s everyone’s business as I pay a lot of tax.

Now you know. Are you going to apply for it?

I don’t live down a country lane so probably wouldn’t qualify even though the route is not really safe for small children.

I pay lots of tax too. Yet, I don’t begrudge a kid getting transport to school. Strange that isn’t it.

I mean you have a big car but you choose to live down a county lane when you have kids why should you get tax payer funded school transport . I’m honestly genuinely surprised. I suppose it seems different to being in a genuine rural community when the pupils are spread through small towns and villages.

I understand there is a school in Windsor where it was deemed unsafe to walk across the Great Park because of the deer rutting season.

We are 21 miles from secondary school - obviously qualify for school bus.

Where do you draw the line? 5 miles, but with a pavement? Or 1 mile, no pavement, 60mph speed limit? Can't just say everyone gets free transport (better for health, wellbeing, socialization to walk if feasible, statistically). Can't say no one gets transport (environment cost of individual car journeys, dc whose parents don't drive...). Of course, there's going to be some who are 29 meters outside the free transport area, v crap.

Also I’m not resenting the child. I’m jealous the parent does not have to drive like everyone else. I doubt if there was no free transport this child is trecking through the wildness the parent would just drive them.