North Northamptonshire Council forecast to spend £23m on home-to-school transport services this year, including more than £50,000 on travel for one child

In response to a Freedom of Information request, NNC said the money will be spent on getting nearly 6,000 children, of whom around a quarter have special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), to school every day.

Councils must provide free school transport to all children aged between four and 16 whose nearest school is more than three miles away.

NNC’s provision also covers children under eight-years-old, where the walking distance is more than two miles, and children up to 16 with SEND who cannot walk and are attending the nearest ‘suitable’ school named in their EHC plan.

A council budget report going to executive today (Tuesday, November 11) acknowledged the risks around a growth in pupil numbers and the annual increase in demand for home-to-school transport, particularly for SEND transport.

According to NNC, to date in 2025/26, there are 4,412 pupils using home-to-school transport in North Northamptonshire and a further 1,567 SEND students. This has increased by around 644 students since last year, with applications still being received.

The most expensive individual contract was £53,500 a year to take a child to and from school on a 39.9 mile trip – which works out at just over £280 spent per school day.

Research published by the National Audit Office found local authority spend on home to school transport has risen by 70 per cent since 2015/16, costing councils £2.3bn in 2023/24. At the same time, requests for the service from children with special educational needs rose by 106 per cent to an estimated average cost of £8,116 per year per pupil.

Families of children who are over 16, or who do not meet the walking distance criteria, must contribute £795 for the academic year if they wish to access NNC-organised school travel assistance. This income will generate an estimated £414,675 for the council in 2025/26 against its £23m forecast spend.

The cost of this service has gone up for families over the past two years from £600. The authority did not respond to questions on whether the fee will rise again in next year’s budget.

North Northamptonshire Council said it was working hard to manage the pressures in the service by increasing places for pupils who are unable to attend mainstream schools within new mainstream units, which will reduce the need for longer-distance journeys and help to bring costs down.

It added that this also supports a wider ambition to ‘keep children and young people learning within their own communities’.

Cllr Elizabeth Wright, executive member for children’s families and education at NNC, said she was ‘proud’ of the progress made with reviewing and improving the home-to-school transport over the past year to address the increasing cost of the service and providing an enhanced experience.

She added: “Our priority has been to strengthen systems, improve planning and make sure every eligible child or young person can get to school safely and on time.

“Like councils across the country, we’re seeing rising costs linked to the growing number of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities who need transport as part of their Education, Health and Care Plans. We’re working hard to manage these pressures while getting the best value for money.

“We’ve also introduced a new IT system to help plan and manage routes more efficiently. This has made it easier to design the most cost-effective and environmentally friendly transport arrangements, cutting duplication and improving coordination across the service.

“These improvements are part of our wider commitment to build a home-to-school transport service that’s sustainable, efficient and focused on supporting children and families in North Northamptonshire.”