Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment she has made of the average cost of transport to school or college for 16 to 18 year olds.

Information on the cost of travel for students is not held centrally and a recent assessment of average costs has not been made by the Department for Education.

The statutory responsibility for transport to education or training for 16- to 18-year-olds rests with local authorities and they are expected to make appropriate decisions bearing in mind local circumstances. While arrangements made by authorities do not have to include free or subsidised transport, most young people do have access to a discount or concession on local bus or train travel, either from their local authority, transport provider, school or college. The £180 million 16 to 19 Bursary Fund is available to help disadvantaged young people to access education and training, and is often used to help with transport costs.