Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government, further to the Written Answer by Lord Nash on 9 February (HL5629), what steps they are taking to increase the number of discounts available to post-16 students travelling to their nearest further education or sixth form college in (1) rural areas, and (2) urban areas.

The statutory responsibility for financial support for transport to education and training for post-16 students, including discounts, rests with local authorities. It is therefore for local authorities, along with local transport providers and schools or colleges, to decide what discounts and concessions to provide. These decisions are best made locally in light of local needs, the resources available, and other local circumstances.