UKC

I know someone started an interesting thread on this subject last year, but I'm interested in getting people's experiences rather than starting a debate! My son starts high school next week, he's going to a pretty near-ish school but it is out of our catchment area, it's also across a county line. There is a private bus organised (I think originally by parents) for kids going from this part of town to that school which he will use. It's £1.30 each way, so 13 quid a week if he takes both ways every day - after school clubs etc. might require other arrangements later.

Having been in Social Democratic Nirvana until a year ago, I have no idea whether that's rather cheap for school transport in the UK? Or is it a lot?

He could maybe bike it when he is a bit older (it's very slightly less distance than I had to cycle for a long time when I was a kid!) but it's crappy having to cycle with stupid school uniform on - at least that was my experience and I didn't even have to wear a stupid blazer and tie like most kids seem to these days.

In reply to TobyA:

Seems reasonable, the kids here get a 50% reduction on the standard fare to and from the local school on a regular service bus. That amounts to £2-40 a day for a three mile journey. Those who have to travel to the next school along (about eight miles away as the crow flies) pay around £3-50 a day.

In reply to TobyA:
Ours used to be a similar amount, until that nice Mr Pickles removed the pensioner subsidy and the bus company closed down. So now we have tondrive them, or they walk 40 minutes home.

In reply to TobyA:

£1.30 each way? Sounds like an absolute bargain to me. Unless pretty nearish means less than a couple of miles

In reply to Bjartur i Sumarhus:


Cheers! It's about 4.5 miles according to google maps, so that sounds like a good deal then.

In reply to TobyA:

In the good old days Blunkett instituted the 4 pence bus fare but travel seems like less of an issue these days.

We get a city wide unlimited card for just over £1 a day at it's cheapest.

In Social Democratic Nirvana did parents have much choice about where their kids went to school, or was it all just thrown together at the nearest school?

In reply to TobyA:

Our eldest is starting secondary school this time too. We have a chosen a school that doesn't qualify us for free transport and this will cost us £25 per week.

In reply to TobyA:

can't help with school bus fares, but in my home town, kids pay 70p for a single ticket within the bus companies coverage area or £2 for a unlimited travel day ticket.

don't know how that relates to school bus fares though

In reply to winhill:

Not for the poorest of those seeking work it isn't, in my local BTCV/TCV building there are notices about where people can go for help with travel costs to job interviews, and people in more remote towns and villages can really struggle.

In reply to winhill:


As far as I worked out you can send your kids wherever you like. A few specialists schools have particular requirements, like you had to speak OK English when you started at the school my kids went to as most the tuition was in English. A few with the best reputations are selective.

In reply to Route Adjuster:

It adds up quickly doesn't it! Sounds like our bus is towards the lower end of cost then. Thanks!

In reply to TobyA:

Flat rate £700 a year here

In reply to TobyA:

Off topic, I got a bus from Keswick to Grasmere recently. It cost £7 single. I was gobsmacked - it's 12.6 miles

In reply to Pedro50:

Buses in the lakes are terrible, too expensive and not enough of them imo.

if you havent finished your business by tea time then you are usually stuck for the evening

In reply to JJL:


Oh gosh. That's a lot!

In reply to TobyA:

In London kids get free bus travel but the mummy's still drive them to school by Chelsea Tractor.

In reply to TobyA:

I haven't got a clue, but I do remember how much it was when I started getting the bus to school, just 30 short years ago. 10p each way, I wonder what that would be inflation adjusted? It was a significant enough amount of money at the time to walk regularly so I could spend the bus fare on other stuff.

In reply to TobyA:

What would people class as an acceptable distance to walk to school, as kids from 10 years old we used to walk. Not sure how far but it took us about 35 mins to get there from my house and my mate who used to call for me on the way lived a further 10 mins away.

In reply to Dax H:

I used to walk unaccompanied about a mile from age 8 and 3 miles from age 10. 30+ years ago it seemed quite normal, not so much now.

In reply to TobyA:
For us it's £700 ish a year as we live 100 yards from the catchment area border. But it's an annual bus pass so my daughter uses it all the time as it covers all Warrington. So it has a plus side.

In reply to Dax H:

A kid can walk a mile in 20 minutes or so. I would say a mile is very reasonable to expect. Maybe a mile and a half.

In reply to TobyA:

There used to be about two or three double deckers to and from my kids school. Council pulled the subsidy from the route so now there is only one bus, for kids that are in catchment area but far enough out to qualify for free travel. Other kids can buy a term ticket for, journey into school only, journey home only or to cover both; but can't pay per journey. Bus now carries barely a dozen kids.

In reply to The New NickB:


An on-line calculator suggests UK inflation since 1985 is about 111%, which makes your 10p cost back then about 21p today.

http://fxtop.com/en/inflation-calculator.php?A=1&C1=GBP&INDICE=UKCP...

In reply to Fraser:

This is interesting, shows how inflation has hit different types of purchases.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/domesday/dblock/GB-412000-186000/page/12

In reply to TobyA:

My daughter currently gets free bus travel as she goes to the nearest mixed-sex grammar school. However, they're considering removing the grammar school element, so you only get free travel to the nearest school. Seems a bit harsh when you've made a decision on your child's schooling based on getting free travel. The cost is about £700 a year, so I guess I'll be driving her and clogging up the roads along with a fleet of empty buses.

In reply to Yanis Nayu:

>you've made a decision on your child's schooling based on getting free travel.

Eh?

In reply to Indy:



Among other things. The nearest school to us is a girls' grammar. She was eligible to go there, but we made the decision the mixed school was the better option. In reality it wasn't a close decision, but if it was £700 per year (which I don't have) could well have swung it.

In reply to TobyA: Not sure where in the UK you live. In Scotland it is (or was when I worked in transport industry) a statutory requirement to provide school transport when a pupil lives 3 miles or more from the zoned school. Local authorities can opt to provide a more generous policy if they wish, and they often do. For example, kids can often get transport if they live nearer to the school, as long as there is a space free on the bus, also some councils provide transport in the winter months for kids living closer to the school than three miles. In addition to this, if you can demonstrate that if your child has to walk along a dangerous route to school, they might get a discretionary entitlement to transport.
Find out what your local council's criteria are, then go from there.

In reply to Sealwife:


Until they change it half-way through your child's education...

In reply to Sealwife:

Thanks. I'm not complaining though, just finding out how much it costs for other people around the country. As I said, he (to everyone's surprise) got into a school that isn't in our catchment area. It's not so far away but as well as not being our catchment area it is even in another county so I doubt there is any available support, we can live with cost.