Practice the journey to school
Where possible, practise the new journey with your child a few times beforehand. If they will be taking a bus, then practice the run a few times until they are comfortable with the journey. If they are using a bike or walking to school, practice the route and ensure you talk about the obvious dangers, like the road or strangers, etc.
Try to find at least one other neighbouring pupil who is going to the same school so that your child has a travelling companion. It may help to speak to the parent and ask them to join you in practising the route. If you are planning to take your child to school by car, it might be helpful to speak to other parents and organise a travel rota so all the parents share the journeys.
If the Local Education Authority (LEA) provides transport costs and you meet the criteria, make sure to apply for a bus pass in good time. If your child will be getting the bus and will have a bus pass, it is important to teach your child the importance of keeping it in a safe place. For the first few weeks, ensure they get into the habit of putting it in a particular place in their school bag and always putting it away in the same place after each use.
Make sure your child always has some 'emergency money' in case she or he forgets their pass, needs alternative transport or has to phone for help. This should be separate to any other money such as lunch money. If your child is taking a mobile phone into school, talk to them about adhering to the school rules on mobile phones and keeping it safe too.