Give out free bus travel to those under the age of 25

The Government should ‘level up’ opportunities by making bus travel free for care leavers.

At Barnardo’s, we know from our direct experience of supporting young people leaving the care system across London that one of the greatest challenges they face at the moment is the high cost of transport.

There are currently over 80,000 children in care in England and every year over 10,000 of them leave the system – and are expected to live more or less independently.

Living on your own can be difficult without the support of friends and family nearby, which is the reality for many of these young people.

From London’s outer suburbs to its inner boroughs, it can be even harder to get around the capital if you are struggling to make ends meet.

That’s why Barnardo’s has launched its new Transport For Freedom campaign, calling on the Government to support and fund free bus travel for care experienced young people up to the age of 25 in England.

Extending free bus travel is a simple thing the Government can do as part of its ‘levelling up’ agenda and would make a big difference to young people who have had a tough start in life and need a bit of extra help.

Older and disabled people are already entitled to free bus travel through the English National Concessionary Travel Scheme.

Given the clear benefits that providing free bus travel could have for care leavers including improving access to employment, services and reducing loneliness and isolation we believe there is a strong case for investment in a national scheme for care leavers.

We are delighted to have the support of Stagecoach for our campaign.

We know there is support throughout the bus and transport industry which is why we are also urging the public to sign the Barnardo’s petition.

Sign our petition at secure.barnardos.org.uk/care-leavers-bus-petition

Lynn Perry
Chief Executive Barnardo’s

 

Picture: An Arriva bus: Picture Wikimedia Commons/AlexNevinTylee