Wheelchair Accessible Transport for Off-Site Activities:

Coaches and Minibuses

1. Hire a coach with a tail lift that will lift a wheelchair on-board so the child or young person can travel with their peers. Companies such as  Momentum Coach Hire can provide these vehicles. Please note that the chair must be checked and tagged by Devon transport to make sure it complies with crash testing etc. If it is not already tagged by Devon transport you will need to contact them to come out and check it.

2. Use an adapted minibus with a tail-lift to transport the child or young person in their wheelchair along with a group of friends:

Please see listed some local Ring & Ride transport groups below.

• • Exeter 01392 494001 www.exetercta.co.uk
  • Northern Devon 01271 328866 www.gonorthdevon.co.uk
  • Okehampton 01837 55000 www.odctg.co.uk
  • Holsworthy 01409 259001 www.holsworthyruraltransport.co.uk
  • Ivybridge 01752 690444 www.idcta.co.uk/ring_and_ride.htm
  • Honiton 01404 46529 www.tripcta.org
  • Exmouth 01395 266662 www.exmouthringandride.org.uk
  • Tiverton 01884 242099 www.tdcta.org.uk
  • Crediton 01363 773303 www.creditoncommunitytransport.org.uk
  • Newton Abbot 01626 335775 www.newtonabbotcta.org

Please be aware that these vehicles are often booked at the beginning and end of school because of school runs, so you may need to consider hiring a minibus that a member of staff could drive e.g: Hire | GM Coachwork (gmmobility.co.uk) , Commercial Vehicle Hire | Enterprise Flex-E-Rent

Taxis

• Information about wheelchair accessible taxis can be found using the following link  Wheelchair accessible taxis and private hire vehicles – Travel Devon
• Do consider the social aspect of the school trip and the thing that most of us remember which is what happens on the bus on the way there and back! It would be a shame for the child or young person to miss out on this by travelling on their own
• Some schools have used the child or young person’s own vehicle – getting insured for it, learning how to fix the wheelchair in and driving it themselves. Will depend on whether the parent needs the vehicle themselves during the day and whether this complies with school’s own risk assessment.
• If the child or young person can get themselves on to an ordinary coach without being lifted, a manual chair will most likely be needed as a powered would be too heavy to be lifted on: A powered chair could be transported separately in a taxi or another vehicle.
• A manual chair could be taken and folded up in the hold, but must be considered in the light of independence and what kind of terrain they will need to traverse.
• Consideration would need to be given as to whether a car seat is required, or something more supportive than an ordinary seat belt.