A comprehensive review of Nottinghamshire’s discretionary faith school transport scheme has been launched by the county council, with a formal public consultation now underway.

The review forms part of the Reform-led 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 £1.25m with families contributing 20 per cent towards the cost and the council covering the remaining £1m.

Nottinghamshire remains one of the few local authorities in the region to offer discretionary faith school transport.

placeholder image — Nottinghamshire County Council

The scheme currently benefits approximately 520 young people across 15 faith schools, though only 10 schools are based within the county.

The remaining schools are located across 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.

Historically, Nottinghamshire provided free discretionary faith school transport until 2007, after which a heavily discounted faith travel bus pass was introduced.

Nearby counties of Leicestershire, Lincolnshire and Derbyshire withdrew their discretionary schemes more than 15 years ago.

Following conversations with representatives from the local Catholic and Anglican dioceses, as well as school leaders, the council has put forward a number of options regarding the future of the discretionary faith school transport scheme.

Option one proposes maintaining the current policy without any alterations.

Option two suggests removing the scheme from September 2027.

Option three proposes a decision this year to withdraw the scheme, with removal scheduled to take effect from September 2031 – this gives advance notice to all parent/carers of the schemes withdrawal and in particular would allow pupils who enter secondary school before that date to continue to access the scheme until it is withdrawn, with the September 2026 year seven cohort being the last to complete a full secondary phase under the scheme.

Option four recommends increasing the parental contribution towards the cost of the scheme, potentially allowing it to continue but with greater financial input from families.

The council is now inviting parents, carers, church and school leaders and residents to share their views and feedback on these options as part of the formal public consultation. All comments received will be carefully considered and will help inform the final decision.

This review does not affect statutory home-to-school transport entitlements. Children who qualify for free travel will continue to receive it.

Coun Bert Bingham (Ref), cabinet member for transport and environment, said: “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’re committed to listening, consulting and working together with parents, carers, church representatives and school leaders to understand how any changes to the scheme might affect families and this will help to shape our policy for the future.

“Please be assured, this review is focused solely on discretionary faith transport and will not impact statutory home-to-school transport.”

To find out more about the options and what they mean for you and to take part in the consultation, please visit nottinghamshire.gov.uk/faithschooltransport

The consultation is running until June 12.

All comments received will contribute towards shaping the council’s policy on discretionary faith school transport.

The outcome of the review will be published by August 3, in advance of the 2027 school admissions cycle.