Travel assistant job and responsibilities
What is my job and what are my responsibilities?
Open the vehicle door, greet the child and parent/carer and help the child fasten seatbelt (if necessary). If the child wears a harness, make sure it is fastened and on securely before departing. If the child uses a car booster seat it is the parent’s responsibility to provide and fit the seat.
Sit in the back of the vehicle with the children. Travel assistants are not permitted to sit in the front of the bus or taxi once children are on board unless instructed to do so by the SEND Transport Service team.
Stand on and support the student whilst travelling on the tail lift with wheelchair users when there is room and if required.
Ensure the students are well behaved and that order is maintained. For health and safety reasons, students are expected to behave well on transport. If there are any incidents on transport, please alert the parent/carer (if you feel comfortable doing so) however the school and SEND Transport Service Team must be informed as a matter of urgency. You are also required to complete an incident report form (if you do not have a copy on the vehicle contact your provider). Small disturbances will escalate if they are not sorted out quickly. Reporting a student’s behaviour is not “getting them into trouble”
Do not leave the vehicle or knock on the students door, if the parent/carer is not visible when you arrive, wait three minutes, then contact the SEND Transport Service Team for instructions. You must not leave until instructed to do so by the team. However, if you arrive early, please wait until your normal pick-up time, then three minutes beyond that before ringing SEND Transport/departing. If you have a mobile phone, you can call or text the parent/carer to let them know you are there.
If a parent/carer gives you medicine for their child, it must be in the pharmacy packaging it was dispensed in, with the child’s name, the name of the medication and the date on it. Please do not accept loose pills or over-the-counter medication as these will not be able to be dispensed by the school staff. Any medication transported to/from school must be signed for at school/home end.
Emergency Medication is prescribed for some of the young people who access SEND Transport. In most cases this would not be administered by the escort on route. All students’ who are prescribed emergency medication will have an emergency rescue medication in place, and this must travel with them on all journeys.
The usual procedure is that if the child displays any of the symptoms identified in the plan
- Vehicle should be pulled over to a suitable place
- Driver or Travel escort call 999. Hand over plan to paramedics when they arrive so they can treat the young person appropriately
- Once paramedics arrive and take over the care of the child, call parent and make them aware
- Call SEND Transport and complete an incident form which needs to be forwarded to SEND Transport
In a small number of cases there will need to be trained staff on a route who do administer medication. Training will be given prior to the commencement of that route and be signed off by the appropriate medical staff.
Store child’s belongings safely i.e. under the seat or belted together in an empty seat. Please ensure these are handed over when they arrive at the destination.
Please do not leave the vehicle for any reason
Keep a record of each students contact numbers, emergency contacts, seat assignment, medical needs etc. This will be given to you at the start of each school year or when a new route is needed by the company you work for. If you are covering a route in an emergency contact your office who will be able to provide a copy of this information. (If a student is no longer on route, please ensure their personal information is destroyed confidentially following GDPR guidelines)
Always ensure that parents/carers take and collect their child to and from the vehicle unless the SEND Transport Service team have informed you otherwise.
Never drop off a student either at a school or home without an adult being present or a nominated person which should be checked with SEND Transport Service before dropping off.