Travelling to College

We want to make travel as easy as possible for our students and you may be eligible for help with travel costs. Please contact Student Services for more information or see the Student Finance page. Alternatively, you can use Traveline.

There are a number of different transport options available depending on where you live:

Transport Assistance – Shropshire Council

Shropshire Council provides help with transport to College if all the following apply:

• You are aged under 19
• You currently live in Shropshire
• The College is the designated post-16 provider/college for where you live and
• You live 3 or more miles away from College.

If you meet the above criteria, a contribution of £875 per academic year (or 3 termly instalments of £295), towards the cost of transport, is payable unless you are on defined benefits (e.g. families on Income Based Job Seekers Allowance, Income Support, Free School meals or Child Tax Credits where the current income is less than £16,190) in which case a contribution of £280 per academic year is charged. Prices are based on 19/20 and may be subject to change.

You can choose to pay termly or annually. The travel pass will be issued once the contribution has been paid and can be collected from Student Services.

How to apply for Post-16 Transport Assistance through Shropshire Council

• Complete an application form, available from Student Services or the Council
• Online at www.shropshire.gov.uk 
• Over the phone by calling 0345 678 9006.

In some cases it may be better value to purchase season tickets directly from your local transport operator, rather than contributing via the Council’s post-16 Contribution Scheme. We would therefore recommend that before making a payment to the Council’s post-16 contribution scheme, you check that this is the most cost effective method of purchasing season tickets.

What happens if the Council declines my application?

• You can apply to the College’s 16-19 Bursary Fund for a contribution to your transport costs if your gross household income is below £26,000. Please enquire at Student Services for more information. Application forms for the Bursary Fund will be available from Student Services and on the Student Finance page
• You can apply to Arriva Bus Midlands, Transport for Wales Rail Services or your local transport provider for a Student Season Ticket.

Please note that if you reside in Telford & Wrekin or Powys, you will need to contact their Transport Department if you think you are eligible for Transport Assistance.

Arriva Bus Midlands – Student Saver Scheme

Students can buy a Student Saver ticket lasting for a term or full academic year. You will be eligible for unlimited bus travel across the Midlands 7 days a week including evenings and weekends. The cost is as follows:

• West Midlands Annual Student Saver - £555
• West Midlands Academic Year Student Saver - £535
• West Midlands Autumn Term Student Saver - £230
• West Midlands Spring Term Student Saver - £180
• West Midlands Summer Term Student Saver - £180

Please note the above prices are subject to change.

To apply, please visit www.arrivabus.co.uk. Arriva have developed a brand new m ticket app with great new features making it easier for students to pay for and download their ticket on the go. Please contact Arriva Midlands for more information.

Public Arriva Bus services

Timetables and more information is available here.

Transport for Wales Rail Services

Educational Season Ticket Scheme

This scheme offers discounted rail tickets for students in full-time education. Ordinarily a student becomes eligible for a full adult rate at the age of 16. However, on this scheme it is extended to the age of 18, so the student will still qualify for the child rate (55% off the adult rate) until they’re 18. Once the student turns 18, they would still be able to get 5% off the adult rate. Only train passes ordered before the start of term will qualify for the discount. Any train passes ordered after the start of term will be charged at the full adult rate.

The season ticket entitles you to unlimited travel on the route specified seven days a week, including evenings and weekends term time only.

You have to apply to this scheme through College – please download an application from the college website, or collect one from Student Services, and return to Student Services, Welsh Bridge Campus together with your £10 non – refundable deposit by Friday 11 July 2020.

There are two payment options (a list of the prices are available here):

• Payment in full by cheque made payable to Shrewsbury Colleges Group
• £10 non-refundable deposit (either in cash or by cheque). You will be able to pay the outstanding amount either on ParentPay during the summer holidays or by cash or cheque upon collection of the train pass.

College will notify you at the end of the Autumn and Spring terms about the renewal of the termly train pass.

If you lose your pass, you can order one duplicate per year (12 months) for a £10.00 administration fee. Any further losses will be charged at the full rate. If the season ticket needs to be replaced because it is faulty (e.g. not working at the station barriers), then this will be replaced free of charge by the local ticket office. Please note: Students are required to travel with both their photo ID card and ticket at all times. There may be penalty for ticket evasion if Transport for Wales rules are not adhered to.

If you decide to leave College mid-term or before the end of the academic year, it is your responsibility to return the pass to Student Services at Welsh Bridge Campus if any refund is required. The amount due will be refunded once it has been received from Transport for Wales Rail Services.

This scheme is subject to change in 2020, please check with Student Services for the latest information.

College Subsidised Bus Travel

The College offers six subsidised bus routes from Whitchurch, Telford, Powys, Ludlow, Oswestry and Bridgnorth. The cost is £645 for the academic year or £215 per term. The bus routes operate at set times, arriving for the start of the College day and departing following the last lesson of the day.

Further details of the bus stops and the application form can be found below. You will be able to make payment via ParentPay from the 13 September and students will be able to use the bus service up until this date by showing their college ID. Once payment has been received a termly bus pass will be issued. If demand for these services are low, Student Services will help find alternative routes to College.

Students are required to travel with their ID badge and bus pass issued by Student Services.

Bus Travel from Wales

Mytravelpass is a discounted travel scheme funded by Welsh Government providing those aged 16, 17 and 18 who live in Wales with 1/3 off bus travel. The card is free of charge.
You can use Mytravelpass on all buses in Wales including the TrawsCymru services. You cannot use Mytravelpass on trains or National Express or Megabus services. If you live in Wales and board the bus in Wales, you can use this pass to travel to Shrewsbury.

You can use Mytravelpass at any time of day and on any day of the week including holidays.

You can apply for Mytravelpass online. You can also apply by calling 0300 200 22 33 and for a paper application form which you can return to them Freepost.

PLUSBUS - Shrewsbury and Telford & Wellington (including Ironbridge)

PLUSBUS is a bus pass that you buy with your train ticket at any National Rail station ticket office or online. PLUSBUS gives you unlimited bus travel (on most or all services) around your chosen town. Use it to start your journey (to get to a train station) or to complete your journey (from station to your final destination). There are no peak period restrictions, so you can hop on and off buses at any time of the day. For more information and to apply, please visit the PLUSBUS website.

Shrewsbury Park and Ride Services

Park & Ride in Shrewsbury operates from three sites:

• Oxon Business Park
• Meole Brace Retail Park
• Harlescott, near Tesco

Students of Shrewsbury Colleges Group are eligible for a 50% discount, Monday to Friday, during term time. The return fare is currently 80p for students aged 16 or over on production of a valid student identification card. You don’t need to have a car to qualify for the Park and Ride Services. More information is available here.

Saver Schemes (may be subject to change)

Boultons of Shropshire
Services operate from Cardington to Shrewsbury via Church Stretton
01694 771226 | www.boultonsofshropshire.co.uk
A termly pass. The price depends on where the student is boarding as the price of the pass is calculated on the daily fare with a 10% discount for advance payment.

Tanat Valley
Services operate in Oswestry, Welshpool, Newtown and Shrewsbury areas
01691 780212 | www.tanat.co.uk
A 10 Journey Ticket which costs 7 times the Adult Single Fare but gives 10 journeys in any direction between two named places. The ticket is valid for a calendar month from the day of issue and is especially helpful to students who do not attend every day of the week. This is a better discount than normal season tickets which gives 10% discount on the standard return fare. The actual price of these tickets depends entirely on where students are travelling from and to and are only valid on their services.

Celtic Travel
Services operate from Welsh Border areas
01686 412231 | www.celtic-travel.co.uk
A 10 day ticket which gives 10 journeys for the price of 7. The cost of this depends on where the students will be catching the bus. The other option is a Day Rover ticket which is currently £8.

Minsterley Motors
Services operate from Ludlow, Pontesbury and Bishop's Castle
01743 791208 | www.minsterleymotors.co.uk
For those students that are travelling from Bishop’s Castle and are not eligible through the Shropshire Council Post 16 Transport Scheme, Shrewsbury Colleges Group are pleased to be able to offer a Minsterly Motors subsidised bus pass for £295 per term, normally £530 per term. Please fill out this application form or contact Student Services for more information.

Lakeside
Services operate from Ellesmere and Market Drayton
Ellesmere: 01691 622761 Market Drayton: 01630 685706 | www.lakesidecoaches.co.uk
Bus passes are produced on site.

• Weekly = £15.00
• Termly = £200.00
• Annually = £520.00

Travel by Bike

Shrewsbury Colleges Group is very well served by cycle routes from many parts of the town. Shrewsbury has been a Cycling Demonstration Town since 2008 and there are many off-road and quiet residential road routes. The Shropshire’s Great Outdoors website details all of the cycle/walking routes in the area.

The College’s postcodes are SY1 1RX for Welsh Bridge Campus, SY2 6AA for English Bridge Campus and SY2 6PR for London Road Campus.

There is storage for bikes at all College campuses and students and staff are invited to make use of these facilities. Bicycles should be securely padlocked and are brought to College at your own risk. We suggest they are insured under your household policy.

Car Parking

There is no Student Parking available at the English Bridge or Welsh Bridge Campuses. Visitors using car parks at any of our campuses should sign in via Reception.

Students who wish to park at London Road Campus will need to purchase and display a parking permit available from Reception. Permits cost £15 and are valid for the whole academic year. Students will need to purchase a new permit for each academic year. For short courses of up to six weeks in duration, a free temporary permit can be obtained from Reception. Students attending courses starting after 5.00 pm do not require a permit.

Parking attendants at London Road Campus check that all vehicles have displayed permits and that visitors have signed in at Reception. A parking fine of £60 will be issued for any vehicles not displaying a valid permit or, for visitors who have not signed in at Reception.

If you are issued with a parking ticket and you wish to appeal, please request a Parking Charge Notification Internal Appeal form at Reception. Appeals will be considered and the outcome normally communicated within 14 days.

Useful websites

• Shropshire Council
• Telford & Wrekin Council
• Powys Council
• Arriva Midlands
• Transport for Wales Rail Services
• Local Public Transport Information

If you have any queries about travelling to College that are not answered by the information on this page, please email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..