Post-16 bus pass applications
This is for Young People to apply for a bus pass to travel to School sixth form or College on the basis of low income. For more information about transport to school or college, please see our current post-16 transport policy statement.
To apply for assistance with transport to school or college, you'll need to provide documentation to prove that the student is from a low-income background. These may include:
- scanned Universal Credit proof
- scanned Income Support proof
- digital photograph of the student - if applying for a bus pass
- the parent, guardian or carer's National Insurance number
- the student's National Insurance number - if they live independently
You'll be able to upload these documents when you complete the online form.
In addition, there are a few questions which require longer answers. You may want to compose your answers to these questions prior to completing the form. You can then 'copy and paste' your text into this form once you're ready to send it. There is a 500 character limit for each of these questions so please make sure your answers are an appropriate length.
The following question will be asked:
- how does the student travel when not at school or their educational setting?
Please note: our system will 'time out' after 10 minutes for each form page, so you may need to gather these documents and answers before starting this form. Read more about uploading supporting documents.
Apply for help with transport to school or college
Definition of 'low income'
By 'low income' we mean the young person’s parent or carer, or the young person if living independently, meets the Council’s low-income criteria. For 2026 to 2027 these are aligned with the targeted free school meals criteria and include:
- Income Support
- income-based Jobseeker’s Allowance
- income-related Employment and Support Allowance
- support under Part VI of the Immigration and Asylum Act 1999
- the guaranteed element of Pension Credit
- Child Tax Credit, provided they are not also entitled to Working Tax Credit and have an annual gross income of no more than £16,190
- Universal Credit, where annual household earned income is no more than £7,400 after tax and not including benefits
Working Tax Credit has been phased out and is no longer an eligibility category. For Post-16 assistance, the educational establishment must also be more than 3 miles from the student’s ordinary place of residence, measured using the shortest safe walking route.