Travel Sickness on School Bus - HELP!!

[Mpreeve]

We have recently moved to the UK from Ireland and have a 14yr old and 1yr old boys. I applied for my 14yr olds place in the local secondary school, along with a second choice of one 3 miles away. I have just gotten word that there are no places available at either school and they are applying for a place for him in the next nearest school, 6 miles away.
Now here's the problem.
My 14yr old suffers with SEVERE travel sickness. He only has to step on a bus, and immediately, he feels ill - we regularly have to get off buses into town (4 miles away) before he vomits (he regularly vomits as we don't make it on time). I don't drive at the moment although he is not much better at travelling in the car, but at least it's more manageable. I have only recently registered us at our local GP and was going to bring him to the GP with this issue anyhow. We have tried every over the counter product over the years to no avail. We have gotten by at home by avoiding public transport where possible, and bringing plastic bags/stopping many times en route to our destination when going in the car.
Is there ANYTHING I can do about getting him into one of the two schools that are closer, or is it the case that if they don't have a space, they don't have a space. He could walk to the first school and cycle to the 2nd one..but the third one would have to be by bus....I am in tears all morning at the thoughts of putting him through that journey twice a day.
I suffered with this as a child also, still sometimes get it but didn't fully grow out of it until I was in my 20s.
Thanks for reading.

What a tricky situation. If the LEA cannot help then perhaps you should look at putting in an appeal for the nearest school. There are lots of appeal experts on this forum, so you may find it helpful to start a new thread with Appeal help needed in the title.
Sorry I have nothing more useful to suggest x

Thank you for taking the time to reply - should I write the appeal post here, in secondary education or is there a more relevant topic for it? thanks

Does he vomit going in both directions? Dd generally only vomits in the morning, I think because the food hasn't had time to settle so we've taken to taking toast with us on journeys and eating at the destination instead.

Secondary education

It's in every direction sadly - he has not eaten anything for hours before knowing about a journey, and that only means he may not vomit, but he will certainly turn green and feel the sickness in his stomach.
I still get it sometimes myself and feel so sorry for him when I can feel the sick stomach too...it's just awful.
I mentioned it to my GP last week and he said to bring him in for an assessment..I'm not sure if there's anything he can do, or can give him, but it's worth a shot.

I'm not sure an appeal would be successful but you can try, especially if GP supports.

Make sure he is on the wait lists for the two nearer schools. There is less movement in the upper years but not impossible for a place to open up.

Get these bags: www.medisupplies.co.uk/Cleaning-Infection-Control/Biohazard-and-Sharps-Disposal/Sick-Bags-and-Disposal/CareBag-Vom-Sick-Bag?utm_source=google&utm_medium=product_feed_or_listings&pl=STD&ccv=Y&gclid=CIitm66X584CFRXhGwod4cwHfA
or similar that can be easily disposed of. If it's a school bus make sure the company and driver is aware so he can sit up front.

Thanks - I have those bags (or similar anyway!) - he will lose his mind if I tell him about this - he has made new friends who all go to the local school. We were due to visit his grandparents today but had to abandon the bus journey after two stops and walk home again...:-(

I will drop around to the school tomorrow and see if I can speak to anyone as I am sure they are back open this week? I have letters from our GP in Dublin who referred him to various places, but haven't brought him to a GP here in the UK with this issue just yet...

Not a long term solution but for family trips try Stugeron travel tablets. They are the only tablet that work for me and everyone I have recommended them to say they work wonders too.

I'm not too bad anymore but travel sickness was the bain of my life in my childhood.

Same here paddypants13!!!

I don't know about cycling half way etc - the school is quite rural and I'm sure there are alot of country roads - I don't know the route myself yet but will certainly look into that option thanks.
I will pop down to the local school tomorrow and see if there is any way I can appeal to them to let him in there!

I think the best you can do is ask your GP to prescribe something for travel sickness. At least then you'll get it for free, even if the product is available over the counter.

Secondary appeals are usually not as successful as primary appeals, so just call the council and your preferred schools and make sure you are on the waiting list. There is usually movement in the waiting lists after the start of term (no shows, transfers etc).

I think you've got that the wrong way round. Secondary appeals are much more likely to be won.