School Transport

 

Free home to school transport is provided to pupils who reside in excess of two miles from the zoned school.  The exception to this is to Elgin Secondary Schools where the excess distance will be the statutory 3 miles as decided by Council Committee.  It is accepted that pupils may walk, accompanied by a resonsible adult, up to two miles to the nearest school transport pick up point. Free transport will not be provided to parents who choose to enrol their children at an out of zone school.

Applying For Transport

School Transport Application Form

Complete our online application form. This also contains the School Transport Charter which all parents must agree to when applying for school transport. The charter seeks the support of parents and pupils in maintaining a high standard of responsible behaviour when travelling to and from school on transport.

The form is submitted to the school who will forward it to our Public Transport Unit. We will process the application within seven working days and issue a pass for each pupil, mailed to the home address. The pass must be carried by the pupil at all times, shown to the driver when boarding the bus, and to any council official who may request to see it.

PLEASE NOTE:  Travel Passes for new P1s and S1s are due to be sent out during the summer holidays. This will include a letter with contact details for the Operator of the route the pupil will be travelling on.  If they have not received a pass by 6 August 2024 they should email us at ptuteam@moray.gov.uk and we can look into why this is.  Pupils from P2 to P7 and S2 to S6 will not receive new passes in August.  The pass they received in February 2019 will continue to be valid.
 

Behaviour

Any pupil who misbehaves may have their pass withdrawn by the driver and handed to the school with a report of the actions. This may result in action taken by the school which can include allocating pupils to specific seats on the bus, exclusion from School Transport or any other punishment deemed appropriate by the school. During any exclusion, the parent assumes full responsibility to transport the child to and from school.

Safety

If an issue of road safety is identified for a family living closer than two miles to the zoned school, then we may ask the Police to undertake a safety assessment on the journey involved. We will abide by the decision, and an assessment by the Police indicating if there are hazards present in the journey will result in transport being provided, subject to completing the online application form.

Lost Scholar Transport Passes

Lost Scholar Transport Passes may be replaced at a cost of £15. 

Please click here to apply for a replacement scholar pass.  https://secure.moray.gov.uk/eshop/home.php

Weather Conditions

In severe weather conditions, school transport may be altered or cancelled at short notice. Up-to-date information will be supplied when possible on Moray Firth Community Radio or by calling the Schools Information Line on 0870 054 9999 with the appropriate pin number for the school.

Parents are advised to make use of this as far as possible, and to be aware that pupils may be delivered home early in the event of a school closure. All families dependent on School Transport must ensure that the school has details of a "storm" address when school is forced to close suddenly.

Parents should understand that it is impossible for us to legislate for every possibility brought about by sudden deterioration in weather conditions. In such conditions, the final decision about whether to proceed on a particular route rests solely with the driver, as the individual on the scene in charge of the bus. Parents must also note that if they choose to bring their children to school when transport has not operated in the morning, then they are responsible for transport on the homeward journey.

Pupils with Additional Support Needs

Pupils who are recorded as having Additional Support Needs may be entitled to transport from their home to the school if they stay less than two miles from their catchment school. It must not be assumed that this is an automatic entitlement. Parents seeking transport in these instances should contact the school who will advise what the next steps are as part of the Child Planning process. If transport is granted, our Public Transport Unit will be advised and they will make the necessary arrangements for transport delivery along with the school.

Privilege Transport

Apply for Privileged School Transport

Privilege Transport for School Year August 2024 - July 2025

Applications for Privilege transport will be open on Tuesday 30 July 2024.  Any applications before this date will not be accepted.  Please use the link above to apply for privilege transport.  If there are seats available on the vehicle you will be contacted with details of how to pay.  Once payment has been received a bus pass will be issued.  The first day Privilege seats will be available is Monday 19 August 2024.

Privilege Transport will be on a first come first served basis

  • Cost will be £400 per year per pupil.
  • Payment can be by full school year or by term which is £100.
  • Each term must be paid in full before the end of the previous term.
  • Entitled pupils may only have one home address. If they stay at an alternative address at times or with a child minder and require transport to there, this will be classed as Privilege and will have to be paid for.
  • Refunds will be worked out on the number of full weeks left in the term on the day the pass is handed back in

Vehicle will not go off route or do extra miles

  • Pick up/drop off point will either be at an existing location or at a safe place on the route for the vehicle to stop
  • All new pick up/drop off points will be assessed using the same criteria as ones for Entitled pupils

All pupils travelling on Home to School Transport will be issued with a Scholars Travel Pass

     Only pupils with a Scholars Travel Pass can travel on Home to School Transport
     The Moray Council Transport Charter is the same for Entitled pupils and Privilege pupils

Refunds

If there is another lockdown or schools work to a blended learning model we will offer a refund.  This will be calculated and processed twice during the school year, before the Christmas holidays and at the end of the school year in July.
 

Contact Us

Public Transport Unit

ptuteam@moray.gov.uk

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