MP raises college transport issues in Parliament

The MP for North Herefordshire, Ellie Chowns, raised the issue in Parliament

The issue of students having to drop out of college courses because of inadequate public transport has been raised in Parliament.

North Herefordshire Green MP Ellie Chowns told transport minister Simon Lightwood she was "shocked" that 21 students at Hereford Sixth Form College have had to drop out this year alone due to the unreliability and cost of public transport.

"We are an excellent college but students need to be able to get to us," said Peter Cooper, the college's executive principal. "It's incredibly frustrating."

Rail operators have apologised, and Herefordshire Council is planning to spend more than £1m on bus services.

Jago Frost, from Ledbury, who will shortly sit his A-levels at the college, accompanied Ms Chowns to a meeting with train company bosses.

"It has affected me enormously this year," he said. "I'd leave for the station only to discover when I got there the train was cancelled.

"So you take the bus but it's much slower so you miss the start of lessons, and have no time to stay afterwards to study."

With a conditional offer to study geography at the University of Oxford, "exam grades matter", he added.

Many students use Hereford railway station to get to college

Fellow A-level student, Alanna Leeming, said the service from Ledbury "goes through patches – you have two weeks with no issues then one week there is constant problems".

"So everyone tries to take the bus, and they can't all get on," she said.

Likewise, when returning from Hereford in the evening, "the bus may fill up at the bus station then drive straight past the college", she added. "You then have another hour or two to wait for the next one."

"It has got particularly bad this last year," said Mr Cooper.

Meanwhile, those from households on low incomes but not on benefits "are particularly disadvantaged by transport costs", he said, adding these issues "should be fundamental priorities for local and national leaders".

Herefordshire Council is due to set out how it will spend £1.1 million of government funding to improve bus services in the county.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service, which covers councils and other public service organisations.