school bus pass refused, any ideas?

cheepskate_2

how long has your son being going to this school.

the_cat

I don't wish to offend but unless you have mitigating circumstances that you haven't yet shared here, I can't see any reason why the LEA should pay for your travel costs. Harsh though it may sound to an individual, it isn't the school/authorities fault that you have moved!

To fund one child going to their preferred school, cuts would have to be made elsewhere. An authority with 3 failing schools should rightly be prioritising spending on the many in those schools, not on the few intent on avoiding them (albeit with good reason)

In times of plenty, it doesn't seem very fair. In hard times, even less so.

relic

It's £33 a month, ask him to check the seats around where he sits on the bus, he'll probably make that money back and more..

notechno

Hmmmm, it sounds unfair initially. But if it was to be subsidised the costs presumably would be met by the Council Tax, contributed partly by the parents whose children are in the lower performing schools. I know how I'd feel about that

silvercar

The only way you would win an appeal is if the nearer schools had no places or your child was in a school year where moving was detrimental eg going into year 11 so half way though the GCSE course. Otherwise it will be looked upon that you chose to move and took into account the need to either get your child to school or to move schools.

Mupette

notechno wrote: »

Hmmmm, it sounds unfair initially. But if it was to be subsidised the costs presumably would be met by the Council Tax, contributed partly by the parents whose children are in the lower performing schools. I know how I'd feel about that

erm perhaps these parents should be doing more with helping their child do better at school.. not blaiming everyone else....

notechno

Mupette wrote: »

erm perhaps these parents should be doing more with helping their child do better at school.. not blaiming everyone else....

Where did I say anybody was blaming anyone for anything? And for the record I, and many other parents in less successful schools, do the utmost to make sure our children do as well as possible. I really don't know what I've said in my original reply that has prompted your nasty remark

*Twinkle*

thanks to those who've replied, he'll be going up into his 2nd year at this school, (year 8) he has had the same group of friends since primary school and does find mixing with other hard but this school have encouraged him and helped him tremendously.
before we lived 20 minutes from the school, he would walk, cycle or get the bus depending on weather, but now the local council have measured the route from our new house and it is 8.4 miles away, to cycle, it would take him on 3 major roads, one being a 70mph limit road, so i am dead against that even though it has a cycle lane on it!
at the moment i cannot work so am i receipt of income support and child tax credits/benefit and every penny is accounted for, so although £33 doesnt seem alot, to me, it is!
i will appeal and if i do lose, i guess i'll just have to tighten my already very tight belt

becs

Are you not able to take your son to school rather than the bus? It's only right and fair that free or subsidised transport is only provided for students in a catchment area or the costs would get out of hand. These costs are funded by an already over stretched public purse and it now has to come down to individuals to do their bit. My parents had to drive me 8 miles each way to school because they only provided transport to an alternative school (same distance away) so it was their choice for me to go where I did and thus their responsibility to get me there.

nzmegs

I really sympathise with you. We sent our son to a non catchment area school because the ONE choice in catchment had a very poor reputation and subsequently received a poor grading from ofsted and was put on notice - it could be closed down...anyway we chose the more expensive option and we also have to pay £33 a month for a megarider. Actually we cannot always afford to buy a months worth so we pay £11 a week.

We also pay for his lunch at £10 a week so it all adds up. However as a family we catch the bus often and so we try to use the ticket on the weekends as much as possible to get our money's worth. I do think it is unfiar the way this system works, but my son is happy at his school and won't be moving. £33 a month is worth it.

However in 2 years our daughter will be starting at the same school and the thought of £66 a month (or whatever the cost will be then) will be a real struggle.