School Transport Guidance for Parents and Carers – Shetland
3 August 2020
Instructions for All Pupils Entitled to School Transport
 Hand sanitisation is required prior to boarding all vehicles
o It is the responsibility of the parents/carers to ensure that pupils have access to hand sanitiser for
this purpose and particular consideration must be given to circumstances where changing vehicles is
necessary to complete a journey
 No food or drinks are to be consumed on any vehicle
 School pupils must not board dedicated school transport or public service vehicles if they or someone in
their household have symptoms of COVID-19
 If a pupil develops symptoms at school, that pupil must be sent home and must not travel on school or
public service transport
o It is the responsibility of the parents/carers to make appropriate and safe arrangements to collect
the pupil from school
o It is strongly advised that a face covering should be worn by the pupil during the arranged journey
home
 It is the responsibility of the parents/carers to ensure that they are clear on whether or not their
child/children travel on a public service bus during their journey to/from school. The services allocated to
each pupil are noted on their bus pass. Bus passes must be carried at all times to indicate eligibility for
service use. A fare is payable for all non-entitled journeys made on public service buses and will be required
if a bus pass is not shown to the driver on boarding. Fares can be paid in cash (exact fare only) or through
using a Local Bus Services card. These cards can be purchased and topped up as necessary on board the
buses. Young Scot cards must be carried as proof of age in order to access a child fare (for those under 16)
or to access a 1/3 discount (for those aged 16-18).

Dedicated School Transport
 Where school pupils travel on a dedicated school transport vehicle to get to/from school:
o School pupils are not required to physically distance from other pupils on dedicated school transport
 Drivers must be socially distanced from the pupils and any support staff must also be socially
distanced from pupils that they are not required to support during the journey
o Face coverings are not required for pupils, however any pupil wishing to wear a face covering may
do so
 Due to the potential for cross-contamination, face coverings left on board will be disposed of
immediately and will not be treated as lost property
o Drivers and any support staff will be wearing face masks
 Parents are asked to ensure that pupils are aware of this
o School pupils are requested to sit in the furthest back seat possible upon boarding a dedicated
school transport vehicle
o Where possible, additional ventilation will be provided on board through the opening of windows or
the use of air conditioning where fitted
o Good respiratory hygiene must be observed and pupils are encouraged to carry tissues in case of
coughs or sneezes during the journey
 All tissues must be removed from the vehicle by pupils and disposed of in a bin at the
earliest opportunity
o Parents/carers are responsible for ensuring the thorough cleaning of any items of specialist
equipment that pupils take to school
Public Transport
 Where school pupils travel on a public service bus to get to/from school:
o All physical distancing guidance in place at the time of travel must be observed from other
passengers (currently 1m in Shetland)
o Where a zone has been marked out for use by school pupils, this area must be used. Physical
distancing will not be required between school pupils in these zones but face coverings must still be
worn due to the proximity to other passengers, following the points noted below:
o Face coverings must be worn in line with the guidance in place at the time of travel
 Temporary face coverings must be disposed of in a bin and not left on the vehicle
 Reusable face coverings must be kept in a plastic bag so that they can be taken home safely
 Pupils must wash or sanitise their hands after disposing of or bagging their face covering
 Due to the potential for cross-contamination, face coverings left on board will be disposed of
immediately and will not be treated as lost property
o Where possible, additional ventilation will be provided on board through the opening of windows or
the use of air conditioning where fitted
o Good respiratory hygiene must be observed and pupils are encouraged to carry tissues in case of
coughs or sneezes during the journey
 All tissues must be removed from the vehicle by pupils and disposed of in a covered bin at
the earliest opportunity
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Each year, I apply for the use of a vacant seat on school transport for my child to get to school as they are
attending a school outside of their catchment area. How can I apply?
Due to capacity constraints on school transport and the necessity to ensure that appropriate social distancing is
provided for the safety of the driver and any support staff on board, the application process for vacant seats is
currently suspended. Details as to how to apply will be provided when the guidance allows consideration to be given
to allocating vacant seats.
2. What cleaning regimes are in place on school transport and public bus service vehicles?
All vehicles are wiped down with an appropriate cleaning solution following every journey. This will include the
thorough cleaning of all common touch points on board. Vehicles are cleaned further at the end of each day.
3. My child is not entitled to school transport and uses the public bus to get to school. What do I need to be
aware of?
Public bus service capacities remain limited due to social distancing measures on board. Due to the number of public
bus passengers and non-entitled school children who may require to use these services, it may not always be possible
to socially distance.
ZetTrans are looking at ways to identify services which are at or are nearing the social distanced capacity and will
update their website in order to inform passenger choices. This website can be found at www.zettrans.org.uk and
the COVID-19 link is on the bar at the top of the page.
It should also be noted that public bus services are changing from Monday 17th August 2020. All new timetables will
be available on the ZetTrans website and on the ZetTrans App in the coming days.
4. My child is entitled to school transport and this is provided through use of the public service bus. I am
concerned about the capacity of the bus and whether or not my child will be able to distance appropriately
from other people. What is being done about this?
The capacities on public bus services utilised in the provision of school transport have been examined and assessed.
In cases where it is clear that social distancing will not be possible, additional dedicated school transport
arrangements will be made. Pick up times and locations will remain the same as previously advised. In cases where
passenger figures indicate that there will be sufficient capacity, pupils will remain on these services. Where possible,
pupil zones will be marked out in the vehicles. Continued monitoring will be carried out to ensure that any future
need for additional measures are identified and actioned quickly.
Any parent/carer whose child is in receipt of additional support needs transport will be contacted directly by staff in
the Transport Planning Service.