Parents in Hampshire who want their children to be considered for school transport from September 2025 must apply on time.

Hampshire County Council has reminded families of the upcoming deadlines for school transport applications.

For children attending mainstream primary and secondary schools, the deadline is May 31.

For children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), the deadline is June 30.

Applications received after these dates will be considered late and will only be reviewed after all on-time applications have been processed.

This means that transport for eligible families who apply late will not be in place for September 2025 and may not be available before December 2025.

The council has urged families to check the eligibility criteria before applying for school transport.

Families with children who already receive school transport do not need to do anything unless their circumstances have changed, such as moving home or school.

In these cases, they will need to reapply for transport by the relevant deadline.

Most families organise their own school journeys, but the council may provide funded transport assistance in exceptional circumstances.

School transport is available to eligible children from the school term after their fifth birthday up to and including Year 11.

For most families, transport assistance stops at the end of Year 11.

Families are asked to explore alternative transport arrangements for their child’s post-16 education or training, even if their child will continue to attend the same setting.

A discretionary post-16 transport service is available in certain circumstances for young people with SEND who are unable to access their further education or training without transport assistance from the county council.

Applications for this service for the 2025/26 academic year must be submitted by June 30, 2025.

For eligible families who apply after this deadline, transport will not be in place for September 2025 and may not be available before January 2026.

Unlike school transport, the post-16 transport service requires families to submit a new application each year.

Parents with a young person who currently receives post-16 transport therefore need to apply by the above deadline if they wish to be considered for this service again for the coming academic year.