Personal Travel Assistance Budget
Personal Travel Assistance Budget
A Personal Travel Assistance Budget (PTB) is a payment offered to families directly which they then use to ensure their children get to and from school every day. Children must be eligible under the Telford and Wrekin home to school policy for families to receive this payment.
Families nationally are using PTBs and report many advantages. This includes improved children’s wellbeing at the start of the school day having travelled to school with familiar adult and greater opportunities to meet with school staff at the beginning and end of the day.
PTBs have been used to:
- help towards covering costs of running a family car enabling you to make the journey
- arranging with another member of the family or friends to assist with childcare
The payment can also be put to use by arranging childcare for a younger sibling whilst the older sibling is taken to school in the family car for example.
The payment is a fixed amount (annual) based on the distance between a child’s home address and school.
Please remember that your child must meet the criteria within Telford and Wrekin’s Transport policy to be eligible for a PTB. They must be attending appropriate school for transport purposes and be eligible to receive travel assistance.
Who can be considered for a PTB?
Children must be eligible under the current home to school policy to be considered for a PTB. You will need to be a resident of Telford & Wrekin Borough and your child will need to be currently travelling to school by single occupancy taxis. Local Authority may also consider offering PTB to children travelling in dual occupancy taxis if both families decide to switch to PTB.
PTBs are granted at the discretion of the Local Authority where it is cost effective for the authority to do so. There is no automatic right to receive a PTB, in place of alternative transport assistance, which you have may have been offered. To receive a PTB, parents have to either apply to the Transport team using the contact details above.
If your child is eligible for transport assistance and meets the criteria to receive a PTB, before granting the payments, the Local Authority will investigate whether there is any transport currently in place that your child could be placed onto at no additional cost or where the cost of providing your child with transport assistance would be less than providing you with a PTB.
Children who are eligible for transport assistance and can be supported to travel to school independently using public transport may not be eligible for a PTB, in these cases and Independent Travel Training course will be offered and bus pass will be funded by the Council.
When would I be paid my PTB
The payments are paid over an 11 month period between September and July. Payments would be paid directly into your bank account each month. Payments are made in advance of each month, with no payment paid for August due to school closure.
What are the benefits of PTBs for families?
- Freedom and flexibility to make travel arrangements that best meet their family’s needs and circumstances
- Choice and control over how funding to support their child’s needs is spent
- Opportunities to share with other parents and potentially increase buying power
- Offer families a range of options to support travel arrangements to and from school rather than relying on the limited services provided by the Council
- More opportunities to meet with other parents and school staff (if the family uses the PTB to transport their child to school themselves)
What sort of travel arrangement should I make for my child?
You can make whatever travel arrangements you like as long as you meet your responsibilities under your contract with the Council. Your options include any (or a combination of) the following:
- Purchasing a travel pass for you and your child and using public transport
- Walking with them to school
- Cycling with them to school
- Drive them using your own vehicle
- Arrange for a family member, friend or someone else you trust to take your child to school, or pay someone such as a childminder to do it for you
- Arrange shared travel arrangements with other parents, such as shared driving responsibilities, walking buses or joint taxi bookings
- Overcome other barriers that may prevent you accompanying your child to school, e.g. make travel / childcare arrangements for siblings.
Can the Council withdraw my PTB for any reason?
The Council could cancel your PTB if:
- Your child's attendance is unacceptable and/or they are persistently late for school
- You move home and your child is no longer eligible for travel assistance
- You have not made safe travel arrangements for your child
- Your child leaves school
- The PTB scheme is discontinued
Your PTB will be reviewed on a regular basis. Once this information has been received and the review has been completed, the decision to continue or to withdraw the PTB will be advised to you.
What happens if I sign up for a PTB and then can’t take my child to school?
PTBs are voluntary and if you find that you can’t keep up the commitment, you will be able to leave the scheme by giving notice of at least 30 days. This allows sufficient time for alternative travel arrangements to be made by the Council.
If you find you are having difficulties with your travel arrangements, we would encourage you to discuss the problems with us before deciding to leave the scheme, as we may be able to help.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. Will payments be taxed?
A. No. The payments are not taxed as the budget is a payment made in relation to the child not the parent. It is used to enable your child to get to and from school each day and should not be used for any other purpose.
Q. Do I need to collect any receipts for petrol etc?
A. No. Once the payments are made to you, you can use them any way you wish to in order for your child to get to and from school every day in a safe and legal way.
Q. What happens if my child is ill?
A. Your child’s attendance record will be reviewed and the payments for any days that they are absent may be deducted from future PTB payments. If your child’s attendance drops below an acceptable level without reason, you will be at risk of having your PTB withdrawn.
Q. I am concerned the amount I will get will not cover my preferred travel assistance?
A. Please do contact the transport team with additional information about possible expenses and we can review the monthly amounts.
Q. Both myself and my child are happy with the current contractor and driver that transport my child to and from school. If I applied for the PTB, could my child continue to travel on the same vehicle?
A. No. If you applied for the PTB, you will be responsible for making your own arrangements for transporting your child to and from school. Even if you decide to refuse the PTB and stay with your current contractor, there is no guarantee that any contractor/driver or escort would remain the same whilst your child attends their school. If you decide to accept the PTB and then return to transport provide by the Local Authority, there is no guarantee that your child will be able to be placed back on to their previous transport. Whilst you could use your PTB to make your own personal arrangements with the taxi contractor to take your child to and from school, your child would not be able to travel on the vehicle that the Local Authority has arranged.
Q. I have been told that Fleet (white / red buses) have been reduced / cut.
A. The Local Authority has not made any changes or reductions in the Fleet service.
Q. Will I need to complete any risk assessments for travel assistance?
A. If you have previously had a risk assessment this will continue, however if you have moved house or it is a new application then the transport team will be in contact.
Q. Is the Local Authority meeting their legal duty with a Personal Travel Assistance Budget?
A. PTB is one of the options available as described in the Home to School Travel Assistance Policy
Q. I have read the information and do not want to proceed with a Personal Travel Assistance Budget, what do I do?
A. Please contact travelassistance@telford.gov.uk with details of why you are refusing your travel assistance in the form of a Personal Transport Budget. The SEND team and Transport team are meeting weekly to review these cases
Q. I have read the information and would like to proceed with a Personal Travel Assistance Budget, what do I do?
A. Please complete the Personal Transport Budget contract that was supplied with your PTB letter with your bank details, child’s name and setting to travelassistance@telford.gov.uk