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School travel policy review to take place this month

Monday, 15 September 2025 11:55

North Yorkshire Council

North Yorkshire councillors are due to be briefed this week on a review of the county’s revised home to school travel policy.

North Yorkshire councillors are due to be briefed this week on a review of the county’s revised home to school travel policy.

Members of the council’s children and families overview and scrutiny committee will meet on Wednesday, September 17th, to hear about a post-implementation review that is scheduled for July 2026.

The timing is intended to allow a full round of school admissions to take place and for the policy to have been in operation for a year.

The revised policy, which came into effect on September 1, 2024, replaced the previous system that allowed families to choose travel either to the nearest school or to the catchment school.

Providing school transport is one of the council’s largest areas of spending, costing £52.5 million a year.

North Yorkshire is among the highest-spending local authorities in England in this area.

Under the revised policy:

Free transport is provided for eligible pupils to the nearest school to their home address.
Support is provided with travel to a child who lives within the statutory walking distance to their catchment or nearest suitable school if the route has been assessed as “unsafe” and there is no other alternative route below the statutory walking distance.
All contracted routes used to take pupils to school are risk assessed.
Discretionary powers have been extended for the eligibility of travel assistance for secondary age pupils from low-income families to attend one of their three nearest suitable schools within two to 12 miles. This is to reflect the rural context of the county and ensure low-income families in rural areas are supported.

The review will look at the impact of the revised arrangements, the challenges faced during implementation, and whether the intended objectives have been achieved.

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