A consultation into the future of Nottinghamshire County Council’s discretionary faith transport scheme is still open for everyone to have their say.
The consultation, which closes on 12 June, comes as part of a review into the county council’s discretionary scheme which offers a discounted travel pass for pupils attending a school on the grounds of faith where statutory low-income eligibility does not apply.
The scheme also offers free travel for primary aged children eligible for free school meals where the chosen faith school is between two and 20 miles from home, extended free travel for secondary‑age pupils eligible for free school meals where the chosen faith school is up to 25 miles away from home and a large family concession where families attending the nearest suitable denominational school pay for only the two youngest children.
The review forms part of the council’s wider efforts to address significant financial challenges to ensure essential services can be protected whilst balancing the budget. Last year, the discretionary scheme cost approximately £1.25 million with families contributing 20% towards the cost and the council covering the remaining £1 million.
The scheme currently benefits children across 15 faith schools, 10 of which are in Nottinghamshire with the remaining five schools in Nottingham City, Derbyshire and Doncaster.
Primary schools affected include: St Edmund Campion Catholic Primary School, West Bridgford; Good Shepherd Primary Catholic Voluntary Academy, Woodthorpe; St Philip Neri Catholic Primary School, Mansfield; English Martyrs Catholic Primary School, Long Eaton; and Burntstump Seely Infant School, Arnold.
Secondary schools affected include: Christ the King Catholic Voluntary Academy, Arnold; The Trinity Catholic School, Aspley; The Becket Catholic School, West Bridgford; All Saints Catholic Voluntary Academy, Mansfield; St John Houghton Catholic Voluntary Academy, Ilkeston; The McAuley Catholic High School, Doncaster; The National Church of England Academy, Hucknall; The Bluecoat Church of England Academy, Aspley; Emmanuel School, West Bridgford; and The Minster School, Southwell.
Nottinghamshire County Council is one of the only councils locally to still offer a discretionary faith transport scheme with similar schemes in Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Lincolnshire no longer offered.
The county council’s consultation sets out four options which are under consideration after engagement with local Catholic and Anglican diocese and school leaders.
Options include maintaining the policy in its current form, removing the scheme from September 2027, removing the scheme from September 2031 or increasing the parental contribution towards the scheme.
Councillor Bert Bingham, Cabinet Member for Transport and Environment at Nottinghamshire County Council, said: “There is just under a week left to give views as part of our consultation and we’re keen to hear from as many people as possible to help us shape the future of the scheme.
“We’re incredibly proud of our longstanding partnership with the faith community and highly value the education they provide to families across Nottinghamshire. While it’s never easy to review valued services such as our discretionary faith transport scheme, our aim is to ensure we safeguard what matters most for everyone.
“We are facing significant financial pressures across all services, and we are undertaking this review of the discretionary faith-based school travel as part of our efforts to address these financial pressures and deliver a balanced budget.
“I’d like to reassure everyone that this review only covers our discretionary faith transport offer and that it doesn’t affect our statutory home-to-school transport offer.”
To find out more about the options and have your say visit the county council’s website: www.nottinghamshire.gov.uk/
