Council announce no change to current post 16 SEND transport

Swindon Borough Council have announced that any potential changes to Home to School Travel support for 16 – 18-year-olds students with additional needs will be deferred until September 2026.

The cash-strapped council stated back in January that it currently spends around £3.4m a year on the transport costs of around 900 young people with SEND and were not legally required to provide transport for young people aged 16 to 18.

Currently, 161 students over the age of 16 receive the free service, at a cost to the council of £726,000 - or a little over £4,500 per pupil.

With the council currently forecasting an £18.9m gap in its budget for the next financial year, all non-statutory services provided by the local authority were being reviewed in order to identify potential savings.

As part of the consultation, which ran from 6 January until 30 March, children, young people and families, professionals and members of the wider community were asked to share their views on the council moving to a model where those aged 16 to 18 who wish to use the transport will have to pay for it, rather than receiving it for free as they currently do.

Views were also sought on whether the council should deduct costs from Personal Travel Budgets for missed school days where the children could have attended school but did not.

A spokesperson for local support group, Swindon SEND Families Voice, said: “Recently Swindon Borough Council held a consultation on Home to School Travel for children between the ages of 16 and 18 years old. The survey closed on the 30 March 2025 and we have been liaising with the council to update parents on the next steps.”

They shared the following communication from Swindon Borough Council on Monday 16 June.

The communication said: “We appreciate this has been an unsettling time for parents ahead of the new school year in September, but we can confirm that a decision has been made to defer any potential changes until September 2026. This will allow for further discussions to take place and ensure families have sufficient time to prepare for any adjustments in policy, should any changes then be formally agreed and implemented.”