Council consults on new travel policy for children with SEN

Readers will remember that Brent Council was forced to apologise when the West London Alliance transport system for children with Special Educational Needs left some abandoned in September last year LINK.  The Council is now consulting on a new travel policy. The notice is published below:

Parents, carers and schools are being asked for their views on a new travel policy being proposed for children with Special Educational Needs (SEN).

We have a legal duty to make sure suitable travel arrangements are in place for eligible children and young people to attend schools and colleges. The West London Alliance (WLA), which includes Brent, Hounslow, Ealing and Harrow councils, agreed jointly to ensure the most consistent, efficient and effective service is achieved with the resources available.

Consultation is taking place in the boroughs simultaneously until 10 February 2013.

• View the school travel consultation here

The proposals are also being presented at two meetings taking place at Brent Town Hall on:

• 22 January 3pm - 5pm in Committee Rooms 1, 2 and 3
• 24 January 7pm - 9pm in the Council Chamber.

Light refreshments will be available.

Comments and views from the meetings will be included in the WLA's final SEN travel policy report, which will be presented to the council's Executive for a decision in April.

If adopted, the new policy will continue to provide transport support for those pupils who need it and have no other reasonable alternative, but will also offer assistance to those pupils who want to travel independently and are potentially capable of doing so.  

This support will be through an accredited travel training scheme to enable pupils to safely develop the necessary skills needed for them to travel independently.

A full-time travel trainer, based at Woodfield Special School, currently trains over 20 pupils from the school to travel on their own every year.

In Brent, over 700 parents and carers as well as special schools and voluntary organisations have been contacted and invited to have their say on the new travel policy.