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Description

Who it is for

Independent Travel Training is available for students aged 14 and over with a special educational need or disability (SEND) who require assistance to travel independently to an educational establishment, resource base or work placement.

How students are referred

  • SEND students applying for travel assistance to Further Education establishments will be assessed by the SEN Transport Officer and referred where necessary
  • By Special Schools – the Travel Trainers work with groups of year 9, 10 & 11 students in Special Schools
  • Requests from others such as school, social worker, SEN Casework Team, parent or carer

How it works

  • Once referred a Travel Trainer will be in contact
  • An initial meeting will be arranged with the student – this meeting can also be with the student’s parent or carer and school
  • An initial assessment of suitability will be made and an explanation of training will be given
  • The Travel Trainer will discuss any concerns with parent or carer
  • Travel Trainer identifies and travels the walking route to the bus stop and bus journey
  • Travel Trainer looks out for anything that may crop up on the journey or any landmarks to look out for when pressing the ‘stop’ bell
  • Training is designed to make the student comfortable and reduce anxiety
  • The Travel Trainer will travel with the student to begin with
  • Training covers how to stop a bus, how to ask for a ticket, where to sit, how to behave on the bus and how to solve any problems (e.g. late bus or missing a stop)
  • Once student is more confident the training will be through shadowing
  • Student is met at the bus stop but does the journey alone – they are met again at the other end
  • Eventually they will travel alone but are shadowed without their knowledge
  • Once they are travelling completely independently regular contact is kept up for a short period to check they are ok and see if they have encountered any problems

The options once training is complete

All bus operators offer a range of daily tickets and most can offer various types of season tickets at a discounted rate.

For further information please contact Debbie Reed debbie.reed@somerset.gov.uk

Type of provision

Targeted - This is for people with special educational needs and disabilities and their families

Centre information

Accessibility and adjustments

Wheelchair access No

Location

Address County Hall, Taunton, TA1 4DY

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