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Compulsory school aged (5-16) Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND) Travel Assistance Policy consultation

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This consultation has closed

Have your say on Barnet’s new compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance Policy.

The council is reviewing the way it provides compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance as part of a council-wide travel and transport review. We welcome the views of residents, parents, providers, schools and other stakeholders on possible changes to the way we provide travel assistance for compulsory school aged children.

What we are proposing

We have been reviewing our policies to make them clear, and easy to understand for people who are thinking about or applying for travel assistance. We have also aligned our proposed

Have your say on Barnet’s new compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance Policy.

The council is reviewing the way it provides compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance as part of a council-wide travel and transport review. We welcome the views of residents, parents, providers, schools and other stakeholders on possible changes to the way we provide travel assistance for compulsory school aged children.

What we are proposing

We have been reviewing our policies to make them clear, and easy to understand for people who are thinking about or applying for travel assistance. We have also aligned our proposed changes with the Department for Education’s (DfE) revised guidance on Home to School Transport, which was published in June 2023.

The proposed changes for compulsory school age children are to encourage far greater use of greener travel assistance options by:

  • Independent Travel Training (ITT)
  • Cycling allowance
  • Walking allowance
  • Funding parents travel cards to use on public buses
  • Personal Transport Allowance (PTA)
  • Increasing designated pick-up and drop-off points instead of door-to-door service.

Your views are important to us

To find out more please read our summary consultation document on the key changes to the policy or the full draft Compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance Policy.

How to have your say:

Complete our online questionnaire.

We are keen to hear your views on our proposals and encourage you to have your say by completing our online questionnaire.

If you would like to request a paper questionnaire or another format, please:

  • email transport.brokering@barnet.gov.uk
  • telephone 020 8359 5116
  • write to us at: Barnet Education Service, Transport Brokering Team London Borough of Barnet, 2 Bristol Avenue, Colindale, London, NW9 4EW.

If you would like someone to help you complete the questionnaire or need more information, please contact us using one of the above methods.

What happens after the consultation closes?

The council will use the consultation findings to inform our final decision. We will publish the results of the consultation, our decision and how we are acting on the results of the consultation on this web page in August 2024.

This consultation has closed

  • We asked, you said, we did

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    We asked

    We asked for your views on our proposed Compulsory school aged (5-16) SEND Travel Assistance Policy. We have been reviewing our policies to make them clear, and easy to understand for people who are thinking about or applying for transport. We have also aligned our proposed changes with the Department for Education’s (DfE) revised guidance on Home to School Transport, which was published in June 2023.

    You Said

    A total of 47 residents participated in the consultation, including 17 who confirmed they are parents/carers with children in Barnet schools.

    • Safeguarding principles and training: 58.97% of respondents find the safeguarding principles and training information for passenger assistants and drivers to be clear, with only 15.39% disagreeing.
    • Appeals process: 47.23% of respondents agree that the appeals process is clear, while 13.89% disagree.
    • Medication and medical equipment handover: 64.1% agree that the information on the handover of medication and medical equipment is clear, with only 5.12% disagreeing.

    We did

    We recognise that where the Council makes the transport arrangements for your child this can be restrictive. For this reason, we are placing greater emphasis on Personal Travel Allowances which allow greater flexibility and choice. We are seeing a year-on-year increase in the number of children and young people supported this way.

    We have ensured that all our transport policies allow for exceptions and will continue to consider every request for transport on an individual basis

    We remain committed to ongoing engagement with families and stakeholders and will continue to seek feedback and adapt our services where we are able to do so.

    You can read the full results here and the key changes here.