Transport for 16-19 year olds

Buckinghamshire County Council provides a 16+ free travel scheme for students from low income households or students who held a Statement of Special Educational Needs in Year 11 only and who meet the eligibility criteria for the scheme and are aged between 16 and 18 on 1 September.  All other students will need to make their own travel arrangements to get to their chosen school/college.  For those students staying on at school 6th form a discretionary fare place may be available and you should contact AMEY Client Transport for further details on 01296 387439.

You can join this scheme if you meet all of the following criteria;

• You are from a low income household (see below) OR you had a full Statement of Special Educational Needs in Year 11 and
• You live in Buckinghamshire and
• You were born after 31^st August 1993 and before 1^st September 1996 and
• You live more than 3 miles from your chosen school or college and
• You will be undertaking a full-time course of at least 16 hours per week and
• You will be attending your nearest catchment school or college (for travel purposes) that provides the course you wish to do and
• This school or college is a government institution and
• You are progressing to the next level of further education from the level of course you completed last year (students re-taking or studying GCSEs only will not be entitled to this travel scheme)

Definition of ‘Low Income Household’                                           

A low income household is one in which students have either:

1. Entitlement to free school meals because the student or his/her parents or carers are in receipt of one or more of the following benefits:-                                

• Income Support
• Income-based Job Seeker’s Allowance
• Income-related Employment & Support Allowance (ESA)                                            
• Incapacity Benefit                      
• The Guarantee element of State Pension Credit                                 
• Financially supported by NASS (National Asylum Support Service)
• Child Tax Credit only (not including working tax credits) and if you have an income of less than £15,860.                 

2. If you are not entitled to Free School Meals as outlined above another benefit that is accepted is entitlement to the maximum level of Working Tax Credits, this means that there is no reduction due to income in the Working Tax Credit elements section of your HM Revenue & Customs paperwork for the current tax year.

Please note that if you make an application you will need to provide copies of your benefit documents as evidence.

You cannot join the scheme if:

• You do not meet all of the above criteria
• You will be undertaking a higher-education course
• You will be attending a fee-paying independent school or college
• A similar (but not necessarily identical) course is available at a school/college which is nearer and/or more appropriate to travel to
• Your course involves work placements

Please refer to the link to the information sheet below which provides full details of how to apply under this scheme.  Please read this fully before completing and submitting an application, also available from a link below.  Also available below is a map to help you identify your nearest college for transport purposes.

For more information call 01296 383250 or email admissions@buckscc.gov.uk 

The New 16-19 Bursary Fund:

In June 2011, the Government announced a new bursary scheme to help the most vulnerable 16-19 year olds in full time education.  The scheme is made up of two elements:

• Guaranteed bursaries of £1,200 a year will be paid to the most vulnerable groups.  This includes:
  * Young people in care
  * Care leavers
  * Young people claiming Income Support
  * Disabled young people in receipt of Employment Support Allowance and Disability Living Allowance
  
• The second element of the scheme enables schools and colleges to award discretionary bursaries to students who face genuine financial barriers to participation, such as the costs of transport, meals, books and equipment.  Schools and colleges set their own eligibility criteria, decide on how much is paid and they set their own conditions for students to meet in order to receive a bursary, for example, linked to behaviour or attendance.  To find out if you are eligible for a bursary payment please contact your relevant school or college.

Education Maintenance Allowance (EMA):

In previous years learners from low income households had been able to claim up to £30 a week EMA which could be used to help towards the cost of transport to school or college.  This scheme closed to new applicants on 1 January 2011.  There will be transitional EMA arrangements to help those who are part-way through their studies and currently receiving EMA.  Transitional arrangements will consist of two elements:

• First, all students who successfully applied for EMA in 2009/10 will continue to receive payments at the same level until the end of the 2011/12 academic year.
• Second, students who are currently in their first year of post-16 study who are in receipt of the maximum weekly EMA payment of £30 will be eligible for £20 each week they are in education or training until the end of the 2011/12 academic year.