Parents and families in the West Wight, who have had their school bus completely withdrawn, are urging Southern Vectis to ensure that a promised extra bus service is in place ready for the start of term in 3 weeks’ time.
Over 48 students at Cowes Enterprise College live in Freshwater, Totland, Colwell, Yarmouth, Shalfleet and surrounding villages and have relied on a designated school bus for many years, through paying the Isle of Wight Council £390 a year for their seats.
Now, the Council has withdrawn the service entirely leaving children stranded in the West Wight and facing a 06:30 journey start which still won’t get them to College on time. Southern Vectis have hinted that they will provide their own ‘dedicated school buses’, but time is running out and no service has yet been published.
Claire Kefford, mum to Noah who is starting Year 8, says:
“There is no High School in the West Wight. Every single child around here has to travel on the roads to get to school, and the school buses are a lifeline. But there are no public buses from Freshwater to Cowes for us to choose to take.
“My son now faces an arduous journey of 4 buses and a 10-hour day just to get to school, which is really going to badly impact his ability to study.”
Sam Mitchell and her daughter Bess in Year 11 add:
“Families in the West Wight cannot be left behind: the school buses are a vital service for our local community, especially as our children return to school safely for the first time since March.
Article continues below this advertisement “Working parents need the school bus to Cowes to support our return to work, and Islanders want to see cars being taken off the road at rush hour to ease traffic congestion. Please, Southern Vectis, support the people of the West Wight and ensure that a bus will be available for all our children to get to school on time.”
Families affected by the withdrawal of the Freshwater to Cowes school bus are urged to get in touch with other parents via Facebook by requesting to join the group “304 School Bus predicament” https://www.facebook.com/groups/2721615228053781.
What is the council playing at withdrawing a school bus ,on what grounds ,money ,cost cutting, ? And yet they go ahead wasting even more money on a joke of a floating bridge,children have to attend school it’s the law and it’s up to the council to ensure they can that’s my opinion
Not to mention the st marrys project what a waste.
You are given a school near to you. Just because YOU choose to send them elsewhere then stop whinging.
You get paid tax credits and child allowance for each child, and lots of it, use it for what it is MEANT for, to pay for your children, not dope, new dresses for yourselves and a better phone and TV.
Club together and pay for a mini bus taxi.
Your a evil little pixie there is no school near by and what gives you the right to say these things about people or are you one of the council that made this decision
I am totally with u on that 1…. we have single mum down our rd driving around in a new vw Touareg….doesn’t work but claims every benefit going
There is no way there is enough space for all the kids that go to Cowes from West wight at Christ the king or Carisbrooke. I know of several kids that are already on the waiting list to move to these schools because of this.
Both me and my husband work full time so I take offence to what you implied above. We work hard and don’t have the best of what’s around let alone get any help from benefits etc
You are 100% right. Many families arent getting any support. and the ones that do are the ones that moan at everyone else.
The only reason my childern go to cowes is cos my son is disabled and due to his health cowes is the only one who can Adapt for him. How dare you judge people. If you haven’t anything nice to say don’t say it,
Also Comment about someone driving around in new car . Seriously grow up it
Could be a disabled car .
people are entitled to judge and are entitled to an opinion. Hard working taxpayers are fed up with working long hours, only to see more of their money, forcibly taken in higher taxes and then handed to feckless, lazy spongers on benefits and see people with disabilities being given money hand over fist, whilst the hard worker struggles to pay the bills each month.
I work for me, to support my lifestyle, not to subsidise others – get your own kids to school and stop expecting everyone else to pick up the tab.
Leave this chat your clearly the one getting all the government money. So go back to your council house and your shiny car and shiny tv.
Let’s start education now and teach social distancing because clearly from this picture they have not mastered it!