Travel assistance for mainstream students

Part of: Home to school transport

Contents

School children

Eligibility

Statutory walking distances are used to decide whether your child is eligible for free travel to school. If your child lives within this distance, you are responsible for arranging their travel to school.

  • A child under eight is eligible for free travel to their nearest suitable school if it's more than two miles from home.
  • A child aged eight or over is eligible for free travel to their nearest suitable school if it is more than three miles from home.

In all cases, the measurement used is the shortest walking distance from home to school, calculated using a route mapping tool.

Circumstances where you are not eligible
  • You have chosen to send your child to a school that is not the nearest school to your home with available places
  • You have moved house within Trafford, but your child continues to attend a school that is not the nearest
  • You have moved to live in Trafford, but your child continues to attend a non-Trafford school
  • Your child attends an independent school as a fee payer

If you are transferring from primary school to secondary school, we can't provide travel assistance if you don't follow our tailored application advice to apply for all your catchment schools.

Apply for travel assistance 

If you think you may be eligible, email school.admissions@trafford.gov.uk or call 0161 912 5007. If we confirm your eligibility, we will send you a form. 

You must resubmit your application every school year. If your circumstances change, your child may no longer be eligible to receive travel assistance.

Travel arrangements

Travel assistance is usually a free travel pass for use on the bus and tram network. The pass allows a child to make a single journey to and from school each day.

Car mileage allowance

Parents of pupils eligible for a free travel pass may choose to make their own transport arrangements and claim a car mileage allowance. This is paid at a rate of 45p per mile or the equivalent cost of the free travel pass, whichever is less.

Parents are reimbursed for costs at the end of each term, based on the child's school attendance.

Children from low-income families

Low-income families are those eligible for free school meals.

Children aged 8 to 11 from low-income families are eligible to receive travel assistance to the nearest suitable school if it is more than two miles from their home.

Children aged 11 to 16 from low-income families are eligible to receive travel assistance to any school between two and six miles from their home (or up to 15 miles if chosen on the grounds of religion or belief, and there is no suitable school nearer).