The new school year starts this week, with some kids in the UK going back today and we can explain everything you need to know about getting free school travel.
The law currently states any child who has to travel more than two miles to get to school should not have to pay and rules currently say all children between the ages of five and 16 are eligible to get free school travel, if they go to their nearest suitable school.
The rules also say the child has to live at least two miles from the school if they’re aged eight or under, or three miles away if they're older than eight, reports the Mirror online.
READ MORE: Four areas of the Liverpool City Region record increases in positive Covid tests
Travel for under-16s is free anyway in London but each local council is responsible for providing this sort of free transport, and you can find details of yours at https://www.gov.uk/find-local-council.
If you get the maximum amount of Working Tax Credit or your child gets free school meals, your child can also get free school transport for up to 15 miles.
This applies to children aged eight to 11 if the school is at least two miles away or 11 to 16 if it's two to six miles away.
If your child has special educational needs or a disability then they can get free school transport no matter how far away you live from their place of education.
Also children aged from five to 16 are allowed free transport to school if there is no safe way to walk there - regardless of the distance.
What are the transport costs for children over the age of 16?
If your child is over 16 and in further education or sixth form, your local council may be able to help with transport costs but each council has its own policy about this.
What do you get?
Each council has its own system, but normally your child would get a free pass for public transport or a space on a council vehicle, like a school bus.
The council gets to pick the sort of transport and route that is the best value for money.
The rules only let your child use the pass to go to and from school, on school days.
Some councils even say if your kid messes around on the trip that the pass will be cancelled.
How do you apply for free school travel?
The first thing to do is enter your postcode on https://www.gov.uk/help-home-school-transport.
You will then be shown your local council's process for getting free transport.
Your child will need to file a passport photo, and if they get free school meals you may be asked to show evidence of that.
It takes around a month for councils to process these passes. If school starts before you get one, you can claim transport costs back afterwards if you're eligible.
