Legal action could follow school transport cuts

Steve Kelly, the CEO of the Pyramid Schools Trust, said the changes would create "turmoil"

Schools in a county are planning a legal challenge to cuts in school transport after a last-minute move to delay them.

Central Bedfordshire Council decided earlier this month to provide free buses only for pupils who were going to their nearest school.

The previous rules provided transport for children going to any school in the catchment area which they lived.

Councillors voted on Thursday to refer the decision for reconsideration by a scrutiny panel.

Steve Owen, the executive member for children's services at the independently-run council, said the new arrangements would be fairer and would save £23m over ten years.

Teachers and parents have argued that the negative effects of the move would far outweigh the benefits.

Children who currently get free transport would continue to receive it until they changed schools, but pupils moving into upper schools next year will be hit by the new rules.

The council said it would save money because it would be able to run fewer buses

Steve Kelly, the CEO of Pyramid Schools Trust, said there was "huge concern" amongst parents "because they are at the stage in the year when they're looking at which school they want to send their child to and they have no idea whether they're going to be allowed a free transport place".

"It's going to create real turmoil," he added.

Mr Kelly said: "We are looking at a judicial review. There are issues around the way the savings were calculated."

“We really don't want to do this,” he added, “we want people to be reasonable”.

Sarah Matlock is worried about the implications of the changes on her son when he moves school next year

Sarah Matlock lives with her son in the village of Clophill, where children can currently get buses to schools both in Shefford and Ampthill.

Ms Matlock said the difference in distances that would now determine which school a child could travel to "is less than 0.01 of a mile for multiple postcodes".

She believed children would be separated from their friends when they moved schools just because they lived in different parts of the village.

Sue Bell, Central Bedfordshire Community Network councillor, tabled a successful motion to Thursday's full council meeting calling for a review of the changes because they were "deeply unpopular".