Travel Training

Travel with confidence, independently
Black woman holding coffee cup in front of train

How does it work?

For over a decade, our Independent Travel Training programme has helped young people with additional needs access public transport with personalised, one-to-one support. Travel trainers break regular routes into manageable stages, building confidence and independence step by step.

Young people aged 11–25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan in Bury, Stockport or Tameside are eligible.

After consulting parents, carers or guardians, we complete a full assessment to ensure the programme is suitable. Clients finish with the skills and confidence to use the bus, train or tram safely and independently.

Enquire Today

The Benefits of Travel Training

Each client will benefit differently from travel training. The programme is designed to build resilience and support young people to live a more fulfilled and ambitious life. Travelling independently is empowering, it encourages young people to step out of their comfort zone and to grow as a person without relying solely on somebody else.

  • Build self confidence
  • Access your community
  • Take steps towards adulthood
  • Solve everyday problems

Training Stages

Travelling is one of life’s essential skills and our four stages of training empowers young people to gradually take control of their future

  • Entire journey support
  • Stranger awareness, road safety and personal safety
  • Understanding the route and problem solving
  • Observation and shadowing

GM Independent Travel Guide

This accessible travel guide has been co-created with individuals with additional needs and is the result of a year’s dedicated work, consultation and collaboration between the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), The Bee Network (TfGM), Oakwood Academy, Greater Manchester Police (GMP), and Pure Innovations.

The guide takes you step-by-step through everything you need to know about using public transport across Greater Manchester, from planning a journey to buying tickets and travelling safely. It’s designed to help build confidence, independence, and a positive travel experience for everyone.

Download the guide Watch the guidance videos
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Parent Ambassadors

We have a team of Parent Ambassadors who have all been in the position of taking that leap of faith and signing someone up for training.

They can put themselves firmly in your shoes and would be happy to have a conversation with you.

As they are volunteers, they don’t always have their phones on, so please let us know if you would like them to call you and we’ll arrange it.

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Jackie

  • Hi, I’m Jackie and I live in Stockport. My son did his travel training for travelling to and from school in July 2024.

    I decided, we needed to do this travel training, as he was getting older. So I put his name down, as I was worried him travelling to school independently and crossing roads. But Jane put my mind at rest, she told me that my son would not go onto a more independent stage until the travel trainer felt he was ready to proceed.

    My son was worried about the whole process, but after speaking to Jane and her explaining everything to him, he couldn’t wait to start.

    This training has been so much more than travel training, the trainer made sure he knew how to find and send his location on his phone, what to do when getting on the wrong bus, how to cross safely at crossings, how to phone the school if my son was going to be late, the trainer explained what to do if my son was approached by a stranger.

    I feel this has made my son more
    independent, he travels independently and goes to the shops on his own, these are all things he would not do before, he did not used to go out by himself.

    I could not recommend this training enough, it is one of the best decisions I have made and both me and my son are very happy that we have done this, after years of thinking about it.

    Jackie can be contacted on: 07729 080922
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Natalie

  • Natalie is mum to Madison and lives in Tameside.

    Madison was trained between February and May 2022 when she was still at Samuel Laycock school.

    Upon leaving school, Madison attended Tameside College, initially catching the bus before deciding to walk the short journey with her friends.

    At the end of 2022, the family moved house and so mum asked if we would be able to do some more work with Madison on the new route. Because of the increase in Madison’s confidence and capability, this work took a mere four weeks to complete.

    Speaking with Natalie she comments that “Madison doesn’t want to get in the car with us anymore. Not because of my driving but because she loves the independence she now has!”

    Natalie was so impressed by the change in her daughter, that she came to work for Pure Innovations as a travel trainer on the Tameside team.

    Reflecting on her new role and her previous experience, Natalie is able to put herself in the shoes of parents thinking about signing their child up to the programme.

    Natalie can be contacted on 07542 229598
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Jennie

  • Jennie is mum to Kieron and lives in Bury.

    It had always been a challenge getting Kieron into school since his primary school days. The site team would have to lock the gates because he was a flight risk, having run away on many occasions.

    Kieron is autistic and has selective mutism. He has always been very anxious, especially around large groups of teenagers. Public settings could easily overwhelm him, leading to meltdowns.

    For these reasons, we hadn’t considered the possibility of Kieron becoming an independent traveller. Until he was offered an incredible opportunity to study digital art at a college in Manchester. Due to its location, it wasn’t feasible for me to drive into Manchester twice a day.

    When we initially met with the travel training co-ordinator, we laid out all of Kieron’s challenges and I honestly thought he would be turned down. But after a few months, Kieron started on the travel training programme. I was very apprehensive, but felt we had to try.

    His trainer really listened and took all of Kieron’s issues into account. Trust didn’t come easily to Kieron, but gradually he began to feel comfortable with his trainer.

    When Kieron successfully completed his travel training, he had a newfound confidence. He now travels independently to college every day, which has been life-changing for both of us. It allowed me to find the job I had been searching for…working as a travel trainer for Pure Innovations.

    Jennie can be contacted on 07706 715893 
Travel Training 3

Kelly

  • I finally feel confident travelling to and from college
Travel Training 1

Jay’s Foster Carer

  • Jay is so confident, even COVID didn’t stop him from completing the course!
Travel Training 2

Daniel’s Dad

  • It helped me support my Dan to gain so much more independence.

Travel Training Stories

H’s Travel Training Journey

H became independent, travelling the route to Samuel Laycock, in January 2022. Although this seems such a long time ago, we wanted to let people know how becoming independent has changed H’s options and opportunities since then! After leaving school, H enrolled at Tameside College on their Aspirations programme so some more work was done…
Read Story H’s Travel Training Journey

Apply Now

Pure innovations icon

We have trained hundreds of young people to use public transport competently and confidently.  Please contact our Travel Training Team for more information.

Enquire about Travel Training
Email Us
A Handy Guide to Travel TrainingDownload
GM Independent Travel GuideDownload
Travel-Training-Review-2022_23Download
Parent Ambassadors – with Photo’sDownload

Travel Training Referral Form

This form needs to be completed for clients you wish to refer for Independent Travel Training.

The information provided is confidential and will be used to process the referral accurately and efficiently, for further information on how we use and store personal and sensitive information please refer to our website https://www.pureinnovations.co.uk/about/pure-innovations-privacy-notice/

All boxes and questions MUST be answered – state N/A rather than questions blank.

Download the Referral Form Download the Referral Form

Managing Travel Training

Pure Innovations are proud to be an Accredited Centre for the delivery of the Open Awards: Level 2 ‘Skills for Teaching Independent Travel’ & Level 3 ‘Managing Independent Travel Training Programmes’ training!

Get in touch with Paul Wainhouse for more information.

Email Paul

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