Hertfordshire County Council are operating a blatantly unfair transport policy for the school bus from Little Gaddesden to Tring. The following article has been provided by Louise Cannon in an effort to persuade the council to reconsider it's policy. School Bus from Little Gaddesden to Tring According to HCC’s school transport policy, children should have free transport to their nearest suitable school. A problem has, however, arisen in this small and close-knit village. Children from one end of the village who go on to Tring Secondary School have free transport, but from the other end they do not. This is because the County Council have an arbitrary division line through the village based on distance between Tring and Hemel Hempstead. This difference of treatment is not only unfair but has other undesirable consequences: For years the majority of children who have attended Little Gaddesden Primary School, most for the full 7 years, go on to Tring Secondary School. It surely is not right that families yards apart with children going to Tring School should be treated differently, some children travelling free on the school bus, but with their friends and neighbours having to be paid for. Apart from being inequitable it is not good for relationships. The policy seems designed to force parents who have difficulty in finding the transport charge to send their children to Hemel Hempstead schools. This not only negates parental choice, but parts those children from friends who have shared Primary School years together. It is not as if there was any real cost to the County, because they would then be providing free transport for the children forced to go to Hemel Hempstead Schools. If each parent (especially those with more than one child) not having free transport were to drive their children to Tring School that obviously would have an impact on traffic and the environment locally – not exactly a green or desirable solution. It could also lead to empty spaces on the bus. The use of private cars also conflicts with Hertfordshire’s Sustainable Modes of Travel Strategy (SMoTS) which seeks to reduce the number of car journeys to and from school, improve child road safety, and improve the quality of the environment. Surely on reflection the County Council should accept the fairness for equal treatment for the children of a small village like Little Gaddesden, particularly in view of the long standing link between Little Gaddesden Primary School and Tring Secondary School? We have started a petition, supported by Mike Penning MP, the Parish Council, Little Gaddesden School and Tring School. Anyone who would like to sign it can contact me via Little Gaddesden school or my e mail address: louise@cannon1.co.uk  < close window
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