MERSEYSIDE students could be stripped of free travel passes as part of a town hall review.
The Daily Post can reveal Sefton council is to scrutinise the way it helps post-16 students from the borough meet the cost of travelling to and from college.
Currently, Sefton students who live three or more miles’ walking distance from their place of study are eligible for a travel pass.
It means they can use public transport for free to get to and from classes.
But now the future of the discretionary council scheme is up in the air.
Officials are to scrutinise whether the scheme is the best use of their resources.
The council last night could not provide figures for the number of students currently making use of the scheme. But it said around 2,300 students are taking post-16 courses at the borough’s schools alone – and that figure is likely to double when adding those attending sixth-form colleges.
Last night, Cllr Peter Dowd, Sefton’s cabinet member for education, said the future of the discretionary travel system was being reviewed.
He said with schemes like the government’s Education Maintenance Allowance, which provides up to £30 a week towards 16 to 18-year-old students’ living costs now available, the council had a duty to review “if this the best way to use the money”.
