Bracknell Forest children starting at Charters School in Sunningdale in September 2027 lose the free bus pass if a school is nearer. Current pupils keep theirs.
Bracknell Forest Council is ending free bus passes to Charters School for new pupils who have a nearer suitable school. The change applies to children starting Year 7 in September 2027. Pupils who already have a pass keep it until they finish Year 11.
The decision matters now. Applications for September 2027 secondary places opened on 12 September and close on 31 October 2026.
Charters is in Sunningdale, in the Royal Borough of Windsor and Maidenhead, about four and a half miles east of Bracknell town centre in a straight line. Bracknell Forest Council pays for the bus passes of its own residents who go there.
The Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Health approved the 2027/28 Education Transport Policy. The decision was published on 10 September and can be called in until 18 September. The council must publish the policy by 19 September. (Bracknell Forest Council, decision 4363)
Why the passes are going
The current policy gives free transport to a child’s “designated area school”. For Charters, that has meant free passes for pupils who live within three miles of another suitable school.
National guidance only requires councils to fund transport to the nearest suitable school, and only when it is more than three miles away or there is no safe walking route. The council says it has been paying where there is no statutory duty to. (Report to the Cabinet Member, 26 August 2026)
The report puts numbers on it:
- about 250 pupils are forecast to get a free Charters bus pass in 2026/27
- each pass costs the council £350 a term, or £1,050 a year
- about 159 of those pupils have a nearer suitable school within three miles
- those 159 passes cost an estimated £166,950 a year
The nearer schools named are The Brakenhale School, Garth Hill College and Ranelagh School.
| Year group in 2026/27 | Pupils with a nearer school | Yearly cost |
|---|---|---|
| Year 7 | 33 (23, plus about 10 more expected) | £34,650 |
| Year 8 | 26 | £27,300 |
| Year 9 | 41 | £43,050 |
| Year 10 | 33 | £34,650 |
| Year 11 | 26 | £27,300 |
| Total | 159 | £166,950 |
What it means for you
If your child starts at Charters in September 2027, the council will no longer pay for the bus when a suitable school is within three miles of home. The report says the cost then falls to parents, unless a statutory exception applies. It names three:
- special educational needs or a disability
- low income
- no safe walking route
Children starting in 2027 can still use the White Bus service, subject to availability. Families who are not eligible pay for it.
If your child already has a free Charters pass, nothing changes. They keep it until the end of Year 11.
The policy also warns that not naming the nearest suitable school on an admissions application “may affect” eligibility for transport. That is worth knowing before 31 October. (Education Transport Policy 2027/28)
Low-income families have wider rights. A child aged 11 to 16 on targeted free school meals can get free transport to a school between two and six miles away, if it is one of their three nearest qualifying schools. The same families can also get free travel to the nearest secondary school preferred on grounds of religion or belief, between two and 15 miles away.
Ranelagh is a special case. For 47 current pass holders, Ranelagh is the nearest school. It is oversubscribed and uses church admissions criteria. The report says many of those families may be able to show a place would not have been available, which would leave Charters as their nearest suitable school.
Key dates for September 2027 entry:
- 18 September 2026: call-in period for the decision ends
- 19 September 2026: deadline to publish the 2027/28 transport policy
- 31 October 2026: secondary applications close at 11.59pm
- 1 March 2027: national offer day
(Bracknell Forest Council, key dates for secondary school admissions)
Why current pupils were protected
The council considered withdrawing every non-statutory Charters pass in September 2027. Legal advice warned against it. Families could claim a “legitimate expectation” that the passes would continue, and challenge the change as irrational, disproportionate or procedurally unfair. The report says most councils that made similar changes phased them in.
It cites Central Bedfordshire and Reading as examples. It also notes that brothers and sisters are not usually protected: in most areas, including Windsor and Maidenhead and Surrey, each child is assessed under the policy in force when they apply.
The council’s finance officers pushed back on the slow route. Keeping passes for all 159 pupils until 2030/31 would cost “over £508,000”, they wrote, and the council should “fully consider alternative phasing out arrangements”. The home to school transport budget already carried a £987,000 pressure in 2026/27.
What parents said
A consultation ran from 4 June to 3 July 2026 and drew 115 responses. Of those, 63% strongly disagreed with the change. The council says the respondents were “likely the parents who currently receive free transport”.
The concerns raised were:
- road safety
- higher travel costs
- the effect on working families
- traffic and congestion
- how the rules work when admissions do not match the nearest school
Payments instead of solo taxis
The same decision starts a pilot of Personal Travel Budgets. Families of eligible children who now travel alone by taxi could take a payment and arrange the journey themselves. It is voluntary.
In 2025/26 the council ran 27 solo taxi routes, costing £627,258. The dearest cost £35,640 a year.
The pilot bands follow Wokingham’s:
- up to 5 miles: £2,000 a year
- 5 to 10 miles: £3,000 a year
- over 10 miles: £5,000 a year
On 20 of those routes, the report estimates budgets would cost about £92,000 a year against £504,311 for taxis. That saving depends on families choosing to take part.
For help with a transport application, the council’s Education Transport Team is on 01344 352002. (Bracknell Forest Council, school transport support)
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