THREE school buses have been axed leaving some Redditch students without transport come the new school year in September.

The 812 which services Redditch to Ridgeway School, the S83 which services Redditch to North Bromsgrove High School and the S85 which services Crabbs Cross to Studley High School have all been withdrawn.

Operator, Diamond Bus has axed the services as they are deemed ‘unsustainable’.

Worcestershire County Council has replaced the S83 with the BG83 which will run from Well Brook Nursery, Cobbs Barn Farm, Alvechurch, Rednal and then to North Bromsgrove High School.

However, this leaves students from Redditch without a service.

Nick Gibson, headteacher of North Bromsgrove High School said: "It is disappointing that a decision has been taken by WCC Transport, without consultation with NBHS, to replace the original S83 bus with a service which does not follow the original route and does not offer the surety of a bus pass for our existing and prospective students who travel from the Redditch area.

“North Bromsgrove High School fundamentally disagrees and opposes this decision taken by WCC Transport as it does not act in the best interests of our students and families who attend our school.

 "North Bromsgrove has taken feedback from concerned parents and has subsequently expressed to WCC Transport that it must urgently reconsider its decision and re-establish the original bus route, and also offer all students who wish to travel with a guaranteed seat and bus pass."

A spokesperson for Worcestershire County Council said they have stepped in to “ensure those pupils who are entitled to free home to school transport will have access to a service.”

“The new route will be a WCC contracted school route rather than commercially operated, as it was previously,” added the spokesperson.

“The county council has a statutory obligation to provide transport for passengers who meet the criteria of the Home to School Transport policy arrangements, and the service needs to be implemented to reflect this.

“Those who are not eligible for travel assistance may be offered any remaining vacant seats if they are available once the eligible passenger seats have been allocated in September.”   

Headteacher at Studley High School, Richard Eost said a resolution for the withdrawal of the S85 is still ongoing.

He said: “We are really stuck we have children from Worcestershire coming to us in Warwickshire.

“Now the service is being withdrawn, some parents are unable to bring their children here.

“A resolution is still ongoing it has left us little time to figure out a solution and there’s been a lot of back and forth between us and the two councils.”

Cllr Mike Rouse said the S85 has always been a private tender between the school and the operator and has changed over the years.

He said: “We will work with the school wherever we can to help them find a new supplier, but because of the cross-border issues we can’t run a Home to School Transport route like we have for the S83.

“This situation was not of our choosing, not of the schools’ choosing, and not something the parents choose either.”