Summary
Admissions distance and home to school transport eligibility are separate tests. Admissions distance affects priority for a school place where a policy uses distance or a catchment rule. Transport eligibility decides whether a child qualifies for free or supported travel to school under statutory and local rules.
A property can be close enough to rank well for admissions but not qualify for transport, or far enough to raise transport questions while still being outside the admission priority area. In England, statutory walking distance rules generally use 2 miles for children under 8 and 3 miles for children aged 8 to 16, but eligibility also depends on nearest suitable school, route safety and local policy. Buyers should test both admissions distance and transport eligibility separately before relying on a school choice.
Definition
Admissions distance is the distance measure used by an admission authority to rank applications for a school place. Transport eligibility is the separate legal and local authority assessment of whether a child qualifies for free or supported home to school travel.