New Travel Toolkit to give young people the confidence to travel independently

A new Travel Toolkit has been launched to help young people to feel confident to travel independently on public transport.
Published: 20 Mar 2025

The Independent Travel Toolkit is a website designed to assist young people in learning the skills needed for independent travel, featuring guidance for parents, guardians, carers, schools, and the young travelers themselves.

This week marks Neurodiversity Awareness Week (17th-23rd March) which highlights the importance of being inclusive within our schools and communities to people who are neurodivergent - who think and learn a little differently than most people, such as young people with ADHD, Autism or Dyslexia.

Using public transport can often be a challenge for neurodivergent young people.

The Independent Travel Toolkit has been designed and developed over the past year, in collaboration with young people and parents and carers. Development of the toolkit has been assisted by Suffolk County Council’s Passenger Transport team colleagues from the Essex County Council Suffolk Travel Training team, Suffolk County Council Children’s and Young People Services, representatives from the Suffolk Parent Carer Forum, and students and staff from Suffolk New College Rural.

We know that using public transport for the first time is something that can seem daunting for a young person. The Independent Travel Toolkit has been designed to equip young people with everything they need to feel more confident to travel independently, reducing their reliance on others while expanding their opportunities. Whether you’re starting to travel independently or need guidance, you’ll find useful tools to ensure a safe and successful journey, and we hope the toolkit will encourage more young people to use public transport.
Cllr Chris Chambers, Cabinet Member for Transport Strategy, Planning and Waste
Cllr Chris Chambers, Cabinet Member for Transport Strategy, Planning and Waste, said:

The Travel Toolkit website offers young people a range of useful tools and advice to help them:

  • learn about travelling own their own
  • prepare for journeys and what to do if things don’t go to plan
  • feel more confident about using public transport.

There is also useful information to guide parents and carers, and professionals who support a young person.

A short film has been released which forms part of the toolkit, in collaboration with students and staff at Suffolk New College Rural. The video explains in simple steps how to plan and prepare for a bus journey.

Watch the film here: 

We would like for you to feel happy and confident riding the bus in Suffolk. Follow the steps in this video to help you have a safe and successful bus journey, wherever you want to go.

The Independent Travel Toolkit has been funded through the Department for Transport’s Bus Service Improvement Plan (BSIP).

The toolkit is designed to engage, inform and educate young bus users of the future which aligns with BSIP goals.

To find out more, visit: www.independenttraveltoolkit.com