Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the impact of (a) inflation, (b) rising fuel prices and (c) other increases in the cost of living on the cost of children's journeys to school.

The department understands that many people are worried about the impact of rising prices, with many households struggling to make their incomes stretch to cover the basics.

Although the department cannot insulate people from these cost rises completely, we are stepping up to provide support, as we did during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The government is providing £37 billion of support this year, targeted at those who are most in need. The package will see millions of the most vulnerable households receive at least £1,200 of support in total this year to help with the cost of living, with all domestic electricity customers receiving at least £400 to help with their bills.

The government’s dedicated website provides more information about the broader cost of living support, which is available here: https://costoflivingsupport.campaign.gov.uk/.

The department’s home to school transport policy aims to ensure that no child is unable to access education because of a lack of transport. Local authorities must provide free home to school transport for children of compulsory school age who attend their nearest school and would not be able to walk there because of the distance, because of their special educational needs or disability, or because the route is unsafe. There are additional rights to free transport for low-income families, aimed at helping them exercise school choice. Home to school travel and transport guidance is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/home-to-school-travel-and-transport-guidance.