The scheme and who is eligible for help

The post16 travel scheme offers support to students who study at school sixth forms, sixth form colleges and further education colleges.

To qualify for the post16 travel scheme, students must:

• Live in Norfolk at least three miles from the sixth form or college (this is measured by the nearest walking route as determined by the Council).  Transport will also be provided for Easton College students living outside Norfolk, if a student travels on the direct routes funded by the College
• Be studying full-time (at least 540 hours per year supervised study – approximately 14 hours per week)
• Be under 19 years of age on 1 September, or under 25 years of age for students with special educational needs (SEN) (transport will be provided up to the end of the course year in which the student reaches 19 or 25)
• Be studying a course of further education, not an HND, HNC or degree course
• Travel on a core route determined by us
• If your child has an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) there is no need to apply for travel assistance as the Travel Independence Training Team (TITAN) are already assessing who is entitled to travel assistance and if independent travel training might be appropriate for them - you will hear direct from one of the TITAN team soon.

Transport will not be agreed to any alternative college, sixth form college, sixth form or other learning establishment, even if the qualification or course is not available at the designated core route establishment.

Students can live and travel from outside the core route area but will only receive travel support from Norfolk County Council once they are on a core route. However, if they live outside of the core route area, we cannot guarantee travel assistance and it is at the discretion of the council whether we can support, for example, it may be dependent on if we have seats available on a contracted school bus

See links below for core route details, which are based on high school catchment areas:

• School sixth forms and sixth form colleges and the high school catchment areas they are linked to by core routes (pdf 10kb)
• Further education colleges and the high school catchment areas they are linked to by core routes (pdf 72kb)

Visit Where I Live to find out what school catchment area you live in. Students living within the core route area and very isolated from a boarding point may qualify for further help such as a cycle allowance or a moped loan through the Kickstart scheme if no other means of reaching the boarding point are available.

For full details read the terms and conditions of the post16 travel scheme to make sure you qualify.

Travel passes will be issued for use on transport within the core route areas which operate at times suitable for the standard college or sixth form day.

If more than one transport operator covers the same route, the County Council will usually only have a contract for one service.

Visit the individual college and sixth form pages for more detailed information on transport options.

Download The Home to School and College Transport Policy (pdf 133kb) for further information.

Free schools

For Post16 students the provision of travel assistance will be assessed establishment by establishment. It should not be assumed that any travel assistance will be provided, although travel options, such as 16-19 discounts, may be available directly from operators.

For Sir Isaac Newton Sixth Form travel assistance will be available through the Post16 Scheme as for other south Norwich sixth forms.

Raising the participation age to 18