VILLAGE schoolchildren have been cut off from a free bus service that has taken youngsters to Tendring Technology College for at least 50 years.

Parents in Great Oakley were left furious after being told their children no longer qualify for a school bus to the secondary school – claiming they are closer to the Harwich School in Dovercourt.

But villagers said the journey to Tendring Technology College’s Thorpe campus is 4.7 miles away, and Harwich School 4.9 miles.

Despite appealing, Charlotte Redgewell, whose eldest son already gets the free bus to Tendring Technology College, faces an annual £682 bill to use the bus – if she can secure a place.

“We’ve just found out that, as of September, our closest school is now Harwich,” she said.

“My 11-year-old son Samuel has been turned down for a bus pass for the Hedingham bus to Tendring Technology College, and friends in Hamford Drive have also been turned down – but a family inRed BarnLane in the village has been accepted.

“I appealed and they said we should have known about it, but no-one knows about it.

“There are lots of problems with this – the Hedlingham bus is supervised with stewards, he would have to get a public bus to Harwich.

“If the council are going to pay for travel to Harwich, what’s the difference in paying to go to Tendring Technology College?”

An Essex County Council spokesman said: “The council’s school transport policy for children newly starting secondary school from September 2015 is to provide free transport to the nearest school if this is three miles or more fromtheir home. This is in accordance with statutory responsibilities.

“There are also extended rights for low income families, as determined by law, and any entitlement for existing secondary school pupils will continue.

“The new policy was agreed in the spring of 2014 and publicised well in advance of parents applying for secondary school places for September 2015.

“All of the admissions information published in the autumn of 2014 made the new policy position clear and advised parents to carefully consider the transport policy before making their school applications.”