Important information regarding ALL home to school/college transport applications for SEND/Zoom Zero Travel Passes for eligible children and young people – September 2025
Educational placements are now being agreed and confirmed for children and young people for September 2025 and the Local Authority would like to invite parents/carers who will need assistance with their child/young person’s transport arrangements to make an application for a travel solution as soon as possible.
Applications close on the following dates:
- public transport for school-age children: Monday 30th June 2025
- assisted transport for school-age children 5 to 16: Friday 11th July 2025
- assisted transport for young people aged 16 to 19 years old (in further education): Monday 30th June 2025
Application details
Public Transport: Zoom Zero Travel Pass
Age range: Compulsory school age only – 5 to 16 years old (Up to and including school year 11)
Applications required for:
- new pass
- renewal of previous bus pass
Applications open: Monday 12th May 2025
Applications close: Monday 30th June 2025
Applications received after this date will still be considered, but the child or young person’s pass may not be posted before the start of the new school term in September 2025.
The child or young person may need to pay the concessionary bus fare of £1.00 per journey (with appropriate under 16 pass) until the pass is received.
Assisted Transport for school-age children with SEND
Age range: Compulsory school age only – 5 to 16 years old (Up to and including school year 11)
Applications required for:
- new application
- change of circumstance of child in September 2025
Travel solutions to be considered:
- Independent travel training
- Parental payments
- Shared travel in taxi or minibus
Applications open: Monday 12th May 2025
Applications close: Friday 11th July 2025
Applications received after this date can be not be considered until September 2025 to allow sufficient time for all applications received during the application window to be prioritised.
Once entitlement has been confirmed, parents may be entitled to receive reimbursement of some of their travel expenses.
Families will be kept informed of the progress of their application.
Assisted Transport for college-age young people with SEND
Age range: Non-compulsory school age only – 16 to 18 years old (school years 12 to 13 or in further education)
Applications required for:
- new application
- change of circumstance of child in September 2025
Travel solutions to be considered:
- Independent travel training
- Parental payments
- Shared travel in taxi or minibus
Applications open: Monday 12th May 2025
Applications close: Monday 30th June 2025
Applications received after this date can be not be considered until September 2025 to allow sufficient time for all applications received during the application window to be prioritised.
Once entitlement has been confirmed, parents may be entitled to receive reimbursement of some of their travel expenses.
Families will be kept informed of the progress of their application.
Parents/carers of young people over the age of 16 may wish to contact student services team at their school/college to ask for advice on making an application for funding from the 16-19 Student Bursary scheme which could be available to support with the cost of transport.
16 to 19 Bursary Fund: Overview – GOV.UK
Important information for young people attending college
If the young person is moving to higher education in college, there are additional considerations below:
- No transport is provided for the first week of the school term to allow for student inductions and timetables to be established.
- No transport can be provided until a full timetable has been received and it has been confirmed the young person is attending 12 hours guided learning per week.
How to complete an application form
All application details can be found on the Travel section on the SEND Local Offer.
To make an application for transport please select the appropriate form for the age of the child young person and follow the link.
For Zoom Zero Travel Pass
Zoom Zero Travel Pass | Instructions – Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council
For school-age children:
For young people aged 16 to 18 years old (in further education)
The application form will time out if there is no activity after 10 minutes, so please allow sufficient time, and ensure you have all documents which may be required to support with your application before you begin.
How are applications processed?
There is a requirement for the Local Authority to have an appropriate period of time to assess entitlement for a travel solution and make a suitable offer of assistance to the family.
Each year, the Local Authority receive a considerably high demand for transport assistance with the majority of applications forms completed during the peak time of (April – September) each year.
To allow sufficient time for individual assessments to be undertaken and to ensure that a suitable travel solution can be offered in readiness for the new school year, there is a requirement for a window of transport application forms to be established.
Transport applications will all be processed in date order up to and including each of the deadlines below and travel solutions will be offered during August 2025. This is to allow families to be informed of arrangements and where necessary, undertake any required home visits and risk assessments, and also provide sufficient time for the child/young person to prepare for any new arrangements.
What happens if I miss the application deadline?
Unfortunately, any transport requests received after the deadlines will not be processed until September 2025 and as there will be no travel solution agreed for the start of the new school year, parents/carers will need to make their own travel arrangements in the meantime.
These deadlines will not affect entitlement to a travel solution for eligible children and young people, and a travel solution will be offered once the Local Authority have had the opportunity to confirm eligibility. Parents/carers may be entitled to receive a reimbursement towards the cost of any journeys undertaken to travel to/from school/college from the start of the new academic year once eligibility has been confirmed.
If you have any queries, please contact us on education.transport@rotherham.gov.uk, or telephone us on: (01709) 249951 or (01709) 254686.
