UPDATE: BUS08 - Travel between Eton Wick and St Peters CE Middle School
In July 2023, Parents on route BUS08 to St Peter's CE Middle School from Eton Wick were notified the operator had served their contractual notice to RBWM and AfC that they would not continue to operate the route after the end of the summer term. Following this, a communication was sent to all current students' parents informing them a review of the route was being carried out with hopes to secure a new operator for September. A reminder was included to plan accordingly and there was no guarantee fare paying seats would be available.
In line with policy, the Home to School Transport Team has been working on processing applications for September to identify the requirement for eligible students for school transport on this route - only once this is established are any additional seats made available to the fare paying wait list to purchase.
Over the summer, a re-tendering exercise has been carried out. All routes are procured fairly through a dynamic purchasing system as this ensures that all operators have a fair opportunity to bid for the work and supports RBWM/AfC contract rules. The Home to School Transport Team can only review the bids received and in this instance the best bid to support the route requirements was one with a smaller capacity.
Vehicle capacity is normally based on the number of students entitled to free home to school transport. Any spare seats on the vehicle are offered to students on a Fare paying basis. Policy states that when there are more applicants than available spaces, seats are offered to the waitlist in the following priority order:
- Youngest students first
- Those closest to an existing boarding point
The Home to School Transport Team has now reviewed the waitlist to create the priority order. Those identified as part of this list have been contacted to let them know a seat is available to purchase with badges issued.
Although we appreciate the outcome of this will be disappointing to some, we remind parents of non-eligible students that the availability of fare paying seats should not be relied upon. Availability in one school year does not guarantee a seat will be available in the following school years and parents should therefore plan accordingly.
Please be reminded that RBWM and AfC reserves the right to withdraw a fare paying seat at any time. This will usually be because a seat is needed for a child or young person who is eligible for free home to school transport.
Is your child entitled to home to school transport?
We encourage parents to use our Eligibility and Application Form Checker on our website and if they feel that their child may be entitled to receive free home to school transport assistance submit an application so we can make an assessment. The application form is available on the council’s website from the School Transport web pages.
School closures affecting transport routes
In the event of extreme weather conditions some schools may decide to close. In these circumstances we will endeavour to keep an up to date list of schools that we provide transport to, which can be accessed at School Status List.