Education travel assistance

2024 to 2025 academic year

The following information is provided to help ensure the understanding of the expectations and responsibilities of all parties involved in Education Travel Assistance, to provide safe, punctual, and efficient journeys between home and school for all eligible children and young people.

The information provided below is for all parties and we ask that you read the relevant section for you (e.g., parents/carers, schools, etc.) to ensure compliance with the expectations.

The London Borough of Bromley look for every journey to run smoothly, be problem free and for every child or young person to travel safely and not be put at any unnecessary risk.

To ensure a consistent standard and quality from every travel provider, the London Borough of Bromley have expectations with all transport providers of the quality of service they deliver, which forms part of their contract with the council.

The council ask parents/carers to help effective travel between home and school by taking an active role in uphold their child’s behaviours, communicating effectively and positively with transport providers and the council, to follow the processes that help ensure the safety and welfare of transported children and young people each day.

All travel assistance is reviewed regularly, and the council will seek ongoing clarification of a child’s education details on an annual basis for continued travel assistance to be considered.

The council will always look, where appropriate, to help children and young people to become more independent in their travel (e.g., Independent Travel Training, moving from a sole vehicle to a shared vehicle, etc.) as their school career progresses year on year.

Please be aware that other changes may arise during the academic year if it becomes necessary to reorganise routes because new children and young people join the school or move home address.

We will always strive to give all parties as much notice as possible of any changes to a child’s travel arrangements.

Overall responsibilities

Transport provider and other agency responsibilities:

Transport providers and their staff are expected to:

• Drive carefully and safely, abiding by all road safety rules (speed, etc.).
• Make every effort to be punctual and to contact families to inform of any delays or unforeseen changes to crew, etc.
• Provide clean and safe vehicles.
• Treat children and young people and their families professionally and with courtesy and respect.
• Ensure children and young people are correctly secured in their seats before moving off.
• Contact the family to discuss the child’s needs and to make arrangements (e.g., pick-up times) before the start of any new travel arrangement.
• Operate all routes to ensure the shortest distance and time of travel for children and young people.
• Notify Admissions and Transport and parents/carers immediately if there is any planned or unplanned change of transport crew.
• Provide Admissions and Transport with a weekly attendance/non-attendance log at the end of each week. This is a complete list of all pupils that have attended or not attended journeys, noted by date and AM or PM. A template form for this will be provided by Admissions and Transport.
• Notify Admissions and Transport of any advance cancellations that are notified by parents/carers and their reasons.
• Ensure that all drivers and passenger assistants on all routes hold valid Enhanced DBS certificates for the duration of the contract.

Transport providers and their staff are not expected to:

• Transport children and young people whose behaviour on the transport is considered to threaten the safety of others. Cases to be discussed with the council as required.
• Delay the vehicle by waiting for a child/young person who is not ready at the allocated pick-up time. The vehicle will wait for 3 minutes after the allocated pick-up time. A maximum of 5 minutes is allowed for isolated incidences with prior authorisation from Admissions and Transport.
• Escort children to and from the vehicle or leave the vehicle unattended for any reason. It is parental responsibility to bring their child to and collect their child from the vehicle.
• Transport any child or young person (including any siblings) for whom travel assistance has not been authorised by the London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team.
• Collect or drop off a child or young person at a different time or at an alternative address without the express written permission of London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team.
• Accommodate any request from parents/carers for a deviation from the scheduled standard school start and end times, travelling to/from a different address, etc. Any request from a parent/carer for such deviation must be declined and Admissions and Transport notified.

Schools/academies are expected to:

• Help ensure that children and young people adhere to keep these expectations and responsibilities.
• Provide a named point of contact, and relevant contact details, for transport related matters.
• Support drivers in ensuring and maintaining orderly boarding and disembarking of vehicles at the school.
• Ensure there are school staff available to collect pupils from vehicles at the beginning of the school day and handover pupils to vehicles at the end of the school day.
• Notify Admissions and Transport in writing of any planned changes to the school day (e.g., sports day, etc.) with at least 72 hours’ notice.
• Consult London Borough of Bromley in accordance with the appropriate regulations about changes in school times.
• Co-operate in any investigation of incidents brought to their attention by Admissions and Transport, transport providers or parents/carers and to support any consequence given (e.g., temporary suspension of travel)
• Provide Admissions and Transport with term dates detail upon request and, at least, at the end of the school year for the following academic year.
• Liaise with parents/carers in partnership with Admissions and Transport in the event of continued non-attendance for transport.
• Where transport has waited for the scheduled timeframe for a child, and had to continue the journey without them, ensure parents act to get their child to school (as it is their responsibility to do so)

London Borough of Bromley Admissions And Transport Team undertake to:

• Monitor and review travel assistance arrangements on a regular basis for each child and young person.
• Liaise with schools and parents/carers on proposed changes to transport arrangements.
• Investigate and take any action deemed appropriate in relation to all concerns, incidents or complaints raised by parents/carers, pupils, schools and/or transport providers.

Families (Parents/carers and children) responsibilities:

Every effort will be made to accommodate your individual family needs, but it is not always possible to arrange transport at exactly the times to suit your individual requirements. An alternative method of travel assistance may provide you with the flexibility to make alternative pick up/drop off arrangements for your child.

If your child is sick or not attending school, please let the transport provider know by 7am (at the latest) on the first day of absence and the expected date of return. You must also notify the school as per their processes.

Please notify London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team and the transport provider for any absences over 3 days by email to sen.transport@bromley.gov.uk

Parents/carers are expected to:

• Ensure that their children are aware of this information and the importance of adhering to the expectations.
• Co-operate with the transport providers, London Borough of Bromley, and the school/college in relation to travel assistance matters.
• Ensure that their child is ready at the allocated collection time, as there is only a 3-minute waiting time allowed with transport providers.
• Ensure a responsible adult is available to receive your child from the transport each afternoon.
• Take your child to the vehicle each morning and collect from the vehicle each afternoon.
• Advise London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team of any changes in your circumstances (including change of home or education address).
• Ensure that an emergency contact number and address is made available to the transport provider and London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team. *
• Ensure that any medication your child needs is given to the driver/passenger assistant who will hand it over to school staff.
• Notify the transport provider and Admissions and Transport as soon as possible for any advance cancellation of transport need.
• Ensure that pupils do not take valuables on the transport. Any valuable items are carried at the parent/carer’s own risk.
• Contact the transport provider in the first instance with any concerns, complaints, etc. Admissions and Transport to be contacted if the provider is unable to resolve the situation.

*If no one is available to receive your child or no contact can be made with the parent/carer or the emergency contact provided, London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team may need to refer to Children’s Services and your child may be taken to a place of safety.

Children and young people are expected to:

• Be considerate and courteous to fellow passengers and employees of the transport provider.
• Act in a responsible manner whilst boarding and alighting the vehicle.
• Always wear/use a seatbelt/harness/child seat as instructed.
• Not be abusive or aggressive towards transport staff or other children on the vehicle.
• Adhere to these expectations and responsibilities.
• Following instructions given by the transport crew to ensure safe travel.
• Pupils are not allowed to eat or drink on school transport, except in exceptional circumstances, including medical emergency and only when agreed by London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team.
• Pupils must be ready on time for transport at both mornings pick up and afternoon collection.

Poor pupil behaviour and conduct whilst travelling

• Transport crews are responsible for the welfare of all pupils on their vehicle and will attempt to deal with misbehaviour either on the spot or will report to the headteacher.
• Nuisance or offensive behaviour: Whilst irritating and unpleasant behaviour is not necessarily a threat to safety, it may significantly impact the comfort of other pupils on the vehicle. This includes failure to respond to the instructions given by the transport crew, eating or drinking in the vehicle (unless pre-authorised as above), spitting, smoking, and using bad or abusive language.
• Dangerous behaviour: This includes behaviours that may present some potential or actual threats to the physical safety of the pupil and/or and others on the vehicle. This includes harassing or verbally abusive others on the vehicle at any time, bullying, moving from the seat, removing seatbelts or harnesses, etc.
• Destructive or very dangerous behaviour: This is behaviours that cause or have the potential to cause physical injury to the pupil and/or others and/or damage to the vehicle. This includes threatening physical violence, fighting, leaning out of the vehicle windows or doors whilst moving, interfering with the opening of the doors/windows, cause damage such as graffiti, scratching windows or paintwork, spraying aerosols, and causing damage to seats/seat belts or other equipment.
• Extremely dangerous or life-threatening behaviour: This is any behaviours that are likely to cause serious injury to the pupil and/or others. This includes physical assault to others, lighting fires or igniting aerosols, threatening physical violence with a dangerous weapon, interfering with the vehicle controls, and throwing objects around the vehicle.

Any incidents of the above nature will be reported to the London Borough of Bromley Admissions and Transport Team by the provider and will be investigated. Incident reports will be filled out for any problems that occur on transport for formal recording purposes and any required follow up action.

Following investigation, any actions that are deemed appropriate will be taken with prior discussion with all parties. This may include the temporary suspension of transport.

In some cases, it may be necessary to suspend transport whilst an investigation is being undertaken to ensure the safety of all concerned.

Where there are persistent offences, it may be necessary to undertake a full review of the travel assistance provided for the relevant child/young person.

Where a child/young person causes wilful damage to a vehicle, and where appropriate, parents/carers may be held financially responsible for said damage to the vehicle and/or other property.