Independent travel training

What is independent travel training?

Travel training supports children and young people to get more out of life through learning the skills and confidence to travel safely on their own. It is a free service offered to children and young people with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND) which are recorded in an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP), are eligible for travel assistance from us and have access to a suitable travel route.

For more information, you can download the leaflet about travel training.

What does travel training involve?

Travel training aims to increase individuals’ independence to help them access future learning, training, employment and social opportunities.

Qualified travel trainers, with an enhanced DBS check, teach trainees how to travel an agreed route, usually from home to school or further education. Training will normally happen in real time, which means that if the trainee needs to be in school for 9am, the travel trainer will work within that timeframe, but this can be tailored to build confidence.

Depending on the trainee’s prior knowledge travel training may include:

• personal safety
• route planning
• what to do if things go wrong
• time management
• handling money to buy tickets
• use of technology like mobile phones or travel apps for route planning and timetables

Who can have travel training?

Travel training is available to anyone who is eligible for travel assistance. Priority will be given to those children and young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN) and/or Disabilities as recorded in an Education, Health and Care Plan, (EHCP).

The training process 

1. An initial meeting with the travel trainers, trainee, and parents/carers to make sure that travel training is suitable and safe for the child/young person to undertake. Parents/carers are involved from the outset and be updated throughout
2. By identifying the trainee’s skills and specific needs, a training plan will be co-created. A trainer will be allocated who will get to know the child/young person and support them for the duration of their training.
3. At the beginning, the travel trainer will accompany each trainee from door to door. The overall aim is for is for independent travel, so when the time is right the support will gradually decrease until the trainee is able to travel the agreed route without support.

Progress is reviewed regularly and when the child/young person is ready and confident to travel independently, they will have a final assessment which will confirm their ability to travel independently on their agreed route. A travel pass will then be allocated so that they can travel from home to school or college independently.