School bus row
Children at faith schools could lose free transport
ANGRY parents have hit out at Central Beds Council over new proposals
that would see children at faith schools losing their free school buses.
A consultation looking at plans to review home to school bus services
is now underway.
The plans include ditching free transport for children attending
denominational schools instead of their closest one and for children
with special educational needs who could walk to school with an adult.
Central Beds hopes the savings of around 558,000 a year will help relieve its 6.8million debt.
But while it has vowed that low income families will still benefit
from free transport, Maria Pires, who lives in Biggleswade and whose
three children attend Catholic schools in Stevenage and Baldock, says it has moved the goalposts.
She said: "Their definition of a family on low income has changed
– families on free school dinners will get free transport, but only families on maximum working tax credit get that.
"I'm on working tax credit but I don't get the maximum because I work.
"My three children are devastated and I don't know what will happen
to them. The application date for schools has already closed so I'm
now probably going to have no space for my children in September."
Director of children's services, Edwina Grant said: "We consider
the chance to consult with residents during a decision making process
as a priority. We have sent consultation documents to parents who we
expect to be most affected by any decision and also sent the documents
to every school, with many parents having already responded to us.
"I would urge all parents to remember that no decision has been
made yet. Elected members will most certainly not be making any
decision without reviewing fully all the responses to the consultation
and having further discussions."
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Weather for Biggleswade
Saturday 04 February 2012
Today
Sunny spells
Temperature: -1 C to 1 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: South east
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: -1 C to 4 C
Wind Speed: 8 mph
Wind direction: North west
