School transport

We have a duty to make sure that suitable travel arrangements are made, free of charge, for certain, 'eligible children' in their area where it is considered necessary to facilitate their attendance at relevant educational establishments.

Eligible children are:

• children/students who are unable to walk to school by reason of their special educational needs, disability, or temporary medical condition
• children /students who are unable to walk in safety to school because of the nature of the route
• children /students living outside statutory walking distances (3 miles for children aged 8 or over, or 2 miles for younger pupils), attending their nearest qualifying school which has places available, where no suitable alternative arrangements have been made (for example, where their nearest school is within the statutory limits but has no places available, requiring them to travel to an alternative outside those limits)
• children / students from low income families, i.e. those entitled to free school meals, or whose parents are in receipt of their maximum level of Working Tax Credit

This applies to:

• primary pupils aged between 8 and 11 from low income families attending a qualifying school more than 2 miles, but no more than 6 miles from their home
• secondary pupils aged between 11 and 16 from low income families attending 1 of their 3 nearest qualifying schools more than 2 miles but less than 6 miles from their home, from September 2008
• secondary pupils aged between 11 and 16 from low income families, from September 2008 attending the nearest suitable school preferred on grounds of religion or belief, where they live more than 2 miles, but not more than 15 miles from that school

In North Tyneside pupils attending special schools and units attached to mainstream schools who are unable to make their own way to school due to their special educational needs and/or live further than the minimum distance of 1 mile.

A pupils' home address is considered to be the one that is registered for the purpose of claiming Child Benefit/Working Tax Credit.