School travel passes - Print version

Coventry City Council will provide free travel passes to pupils aged 5 to 16 who meet the criteria set out in the Home to school transport policy and details on how the process works can be found on the following pages. 

Parents/carers are responsible in law, for ensuring that their children attend school regularly.

If a parent/carer exercises their right to choose a school other than the nearest suitable school, the Council does not have a duty to provide travel assistance. In these circumstances, parents/carers will be required to make their own travel arrangements.

• Home to school statutory school age policy [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/downloads/file/27695/home_to_school_statutory_school_age_policy]
• Home to school travel and transport guidance [https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance]

DfE Home to School Travel Blog Post for Parents [https://educationhub.blog.gov.uk/2023/11/03/free-school-transport-explained-eligible-free-travel/]

How to qualify for a free travel pass

We have a duty to provide free home to school transport for children who live within the Coventry boundary, are of statutory school age (5 - 16 years of age) and meet one of the following criteria:

General entitlement

Free transport will be provided for pupils attending the nearest qualifying school at which places are available if the distance from the home address to the school is:

• more than two miles for children aged 5 to 7 years
• more than three miles for children aged 8 to 16

The two-mile limit will also apply to children over the age of 8 from low-income families.

In each case, this is the shortest walking route between the home address and the school measured by which a child, accompanied as necessary, may walk safely. 

If however, you successfully apply for a place for your child at a school that is not the nearest school with places available, you will not qualify for a free travel pass unless you meet the low-income rules.

Low-income entitlement

There are extra ways in which low-income families may also qualify for free travel. Low-income families are defined as those who are entitled to free school meals or who are in receipt of their maximum level of working tax credit. Children from low-income families will be entitled to free travel to if:

Aged 8-11 and attending the nearest qualifying school which is more than two miles from their home

Aged 11-16 attending:

• One of the three nearest qualifying schools between two and six miles from their home
• The nearest school preferred by reason of a parent's religion or belief which is between two and 15 miles from their home

Exceptional circumstances

Where pupils do not qualify for free travel on distance grounds, in certain exceptional circumstances a child may be eligible for free transport. Each application will be considered on its individual merits, taking full account of all the circumstances put forward. Please see the appeals section for further details. [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/schools-schooling/school-travel-passes/7]

Individual school policies

Where a child does not qualify under the Coventry City Council home to school transport policy the following schools operate a discretionary policy in which a child may qualify for free travel under their own individual transport policy.

Cardinal Newman Catholic School

• Pupils must be of statutory school age i.e. in Year 7 to 11 
• Live within the Coventry Local Authority area
• Their home address must be three miles or more from the school measured by the nearest available walking route
• They must have attended the associated Catholic primary school; or
• Cardinal Newman was their first choice as a secondary school

Cardinal Wiseman Catholic School

Pupils must be of statutory school in Years 7 to 11 and meet all of the following criteria:

• Live within the Coventry Local Authority area
• Their home address must be three miles or more from the school measured by the nearest available walking route
• Cardinal Wiseman was their first choice as a secondary school 
• They must have attended a Catholic school

In addition, for pupils who are in Year 7 for the 2024-25 academic year, free bus passes will be available for eligible pupils. Eligible pupils are children who meet all three criteria:

1. On the application form Cardinal Wiseman was their first choice as a secondary school.
2. The pupil has a home address which is 2 miles or more from the school.
3. Pupil has attended one of the partnered Catholic Primary schools within Romero: Corpus Christi, Good Shepherd, Sacred Heart, SS Peter and Paul, St Gregory, St John Fisher, St Patrick’s.

Funding for Year 7 only is covered by Cardinal Wiseman.

Parents who wish to appeal against the decision to refuse their child a free bus pass should make that appeal request in writing to the Chair of the Governing Body at the school address or by email to admin.cw@romeromac.com [mailto:admin.cw@romeromac.com]. The governing body will convene a panel to decide whether or not to support a free bus pass application.

West Coventry Academy 

The school transport policy ceased for all new students joining West Coventry Academy.

For the academic year 2024-25:

Students in Year 11 at the school who were entitled to a free travel pass under the 2019/20 academic year policy will continue to be granted passes until the end of year 11 as long as there has been no change in circumstances.

Applying for a free travel pass

If you think your child may qualify for free transport, you can complete an application using our online application process [/applyforatravelpass].

Entitlement to a free travel pass is reviewed annually. Pupils who currently qualify for free transport will be notified by the end of August if this will continue to be granted for the following academic year.

If there has been a change in your circumstances, please notify our office.

For children starting secondary school for the first time you can make an application as soon as you have received an offer of a school place.

We recommend applications are submitted by the end of July. If any applications are received after this date unfortunately we cannot guarantee these will be processed in time for the start of the autumn term in September.

SEN travel assistance

If your child has special educational needs or a disability there may be additional ways for you to qualify for assistance with travel to school.

Please contact the SEN team on 024 7683 1614 / access@coventry.gov.uk [mailto:access@coventry.gov.uk] or visit SEN travel assistance [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/travelassistance].

New travel pass applicants

You will receive an email confirming if your child is entitled to a free travel pass. If your child is entitled you will need to:

• Register an account on the National Express portal [http://nxbusportal.co.uk/travel]
• Provide a passport style photograph of your child to be able to upload onto your application.

Once the application via the National Express portal has been submitted your pass will be posted to your home address within 7 days.

If you have any difficulties using the online portal, please contact National Express directly on 0121 254 7272.

Renewing your free travel pass

Updates for academic year 2024/25

If your child qualified for a free travel pass for the previous academic year you do not need to submit a new application.

Entitlement to a free travel pass is reviewed annually, and you will be notified before the start of term if your child will continue to be granted for the new academic year.

Claim codes will be issued by email by 30 August 2024 to enable you to order the necessary pass and top up your existing travel card. 

Further details are available on how to top up your existing pass [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/schools-schooling/school-travel-passes/6].

However, if there has been a change in your circumstances, please notify our office immediately as this may impact your child’s entitlement and passes will be cancelled if no longer eligible.  

• National Express issue Academic Year tickets which are valid from September to August and can now be used on all bus operators in the West Midlands region
• Passes can be used to travel to and from school but also during evenings and weekends 
• If students lose their pass replacement cards are available for £7.50 and sent within 7 days  

How to top up my existing pass

1. Please log back into the National Express portal [https://nxbusportal.co.uk/travel/coventry/] by entering your existing email address and password for this account.
2. Enter your child’s claim code.
3. You will have the option to choose your child’s existing swift card.
4. Once you have placed the order, you will now need to collect the bus pass onto the card using either:
   • Swift collector - You can top up your pass at the main Travel Shop situated in Pool Meadow Bus Station, Fairfax Street, Coventry, CV1 5AD or at your nearest Swift Collector.
   • TfWM app [https://www.tfwm.org.uk/who-we-are/our-apps/]- You can download the TfWM app onto your mobile phone and hold the swift card against the back of the phone to load the pass onto the swift card. The app is free to download from the App Store [https://apps.apple.com/gb/app/swift-app-by-tfwm/id1513880983] and Google Play Store and works on most modern mobiles and devices.

Swift card help and FAQs [https://nxbus.co.uk/west-midlands/help-information/frequently-asked-questions/swift-card-help-faqs]

Replacement cards

If you do not have your child’s existing swift card you can order a replacement card at the cost of £7.50.

How to appeal a school transport decision

If you are dissatisfied with the decision that has been made on your application, you do have a right to appeal under the Council home to school transport policy.

Please note: If you have been refused a pass under the Cardinal Wiseman Catholic school transport policy then you must appeal direct to the school. 

Appeals must be submitted in writing within 20 working days of your application being refused. This is a stage one appeal. You can complete an appeal form by using our online application form [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/travelpassappeal].

The appeal must provide reasons for challenging the refusal of a free travel pass and you may include any supporting information or documents to support these reasons. Once received, the evidence submitted and the decision to refuse the application will be reviewed by a senior officer and will be responded to within 20 working days.

If a stage one appeal is unsuccessful, the decision can be reviewed by an independent appeal panel. This is a stage two appeal and the final step in the appeal process. The panel will review any written or verbal representation within 40 working days to see if the policy has been correctly applied and if all the evidence has been properly considered and will issue a final decision letter.

Appeal process flowchart [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/downloads/file/33442/school_travel_pass_appeal_flowchart]

Lost bus pass

How do I get a replacement bus pass if this has been lost?

Any replacement enquiries are dealt with by the bus company directly.

Please contact National Express directly on 0121 254 7272.

The cost of a replacement pass is £7.50 and payments must be made over the phone. 

Post 16 travel

Free travel passes are issued children of statutory school age (5-16 years old).

There are limited rights to Post 16 transport, applicants with severe mobility or learning difficulties may apply for discretionary travel assistance by filling in the Request for Travel Assistance Post-16 form [https://myaccount.coventry.gov.uk/service/Travel_assistance___Post_16_application].

Any application for travel assistance needs to be made under the Post 16 Policy [https://www.coventry.gov.uk/travelassistancepolicies].