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Smithdon High School

Transport

Many of our Year 7 to 11 students travel to school by bus, with the remainder walking, cycling or being driven by parents.  

All students should enter the school site by the first gate onto the hard-play area! The Reception entrance towards the end of Downs Road, with its associated staff and visitors’ car park, is for staff and visitor use only – or students arriving to school late (after 8.25am).

Walking/Cycling

For students who walk or cycle to school, we expect them to behave sensibly, follow the rules of road and to keep one another safe.

On arrival on site, there are two covered bike racks available for students to store their cycles safely for the school day. We advise that a chain and lock is used to secure the cycle and the child’s helmet to the shelter, rather than the need to carry a helmet around the school.

Travelling by Bus or Minibus

Please note that students travelling to school by bus should arrive at their bus stop at least 10 minutes prior to the bus departure time and wait for at least 30 minutes in the event of a late bus. 

Most bus services arrive at the school site, where children are met from the bus by staff in a well-rehearsed routine to ensure safety on site.  The drop-off point is by the first entrance into the school's hard-play area, close to the entrance to Downs Road.  Buses enter Downs Road, turn at the end of the road, and then drop off their passengers on the way back out. 

On departure, staff duty teams organise the loading of the buses one at a time from the safety of the hard-play areas at the top of Downs Road and by the gravel parking area, to ensure an orderly exit from school.

If you have any queries or concerns regarding school transport, please contact the relevant Pastoral Manager for your child. However, please be aware that this service is provided by Norfolk County Council (and their chosen contractors), so we may need to contact them to be able to provide a response to your queries.

We have been advised by Travel and Transport at Norfolk County Council that in accordance with their Home to School Policy and the current situation with Covid, they can only authorise transport at the start and end of the school day.  Therefore Lynx buses will no longer be able to accept school passes outside of normal pick up/collection times and transport home following after-school clubs and detentions etc. will be the responsibility of the parent.

Travelling by Private Car

There is often a queue of buses occupying Downs Road between 08.05 and 08.25. Vehicular access for private vehicles can be tricky during these times, as buses occupy one carriageway while dropping off their passengers.  We therefore ask parents dropping off children by car to avoid entering Downs Road between these times, by dropping students where they can use the crossing over the main road to access the school site.

Alternatively, parents can use the car park at the top of Downs Road to drop off students – by entering the car park, turning around at the bottom, then dropping students off on the return towards the gate. This prevents creating a blockage at the entrance to the car park/top of Downs Road and reduces the danger to the students crossing the entrance to get to the pedestrian entry gate.