Sustainable modes of travel strategy (SMOTS)
Travel to schools within Cheshire East is an essential aspect of daily life. The council’s draft Active Travel strategy (2025) has a vision for ‘a borough where walking, wheeling and cycling is the easy option for short journeys, achieved through a connected, safe and accessible network that supports a healthy Cheshire East’. This approach reflects the Cheshire East Local Transport Plan by translating its ambition for a well-connected, safe, sustainable and accessible transport network into a focused approach for delivering active travel.
National research shows that developing more sustainable alternatives to the use of the single occupancy car for home to school transport provides benefits to the environment and to children’s and young people’s physical and mental well-being, helping to develop road safety skills and provide an increased sense of independence.
You can read more about school travel planning and the various initiatives that schools can use to promote sustainable school travel, including information about walking buses, park and stride, and other options.
The Department for Education guidance for local authorities on their home to school travel duties and the purpose of a Sustainable Modes of Travel to Schools strategy.
Local authorities are under a statutory duty under the Education Act 1996 to promote the use of sustainable travel and transport to and from institutions where education or training is delivered. The duty applies to children and young people of compulsory school age (5-16) who travel to receive education or training in the Local Authority’s area.
Preparing the sustainable modes of travel to school strategy
The SMOTS Strategy is one of a suite of education, travel and transport policies and strategies being developed or already adopted by the council to help meet our corporate objectives. There are significant links between them.
The development of the SMOTS Strategy considered home to school travel and transport needs and current travel behaviour. We reviewed a sample of school travel plans prepared by Cheshire East schools, which identified opportunities to further increase the number of children using sustainable modes to travel to school. The SMOTS Strategy sets out the council’s approach to how the proposed measures can be implemented.
The following diagram sets out how we will implement the SMOTS strategy to achieve council priorities.
The SMOTS Strategy was approved for adoption by Cabinet in July 2018.
A summary report of the consultation responses can be found on our consultations results page.
Page last reviewed: 16 July 2026
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