A TREVETHIN mum is calling for local bus passes to be changed otherwise she will not be sending her child to school.

Andrea Price, whose daughter Charlotte currently attends Pen y Garn Primary School, doesn’t want her child to attend West Monmouth but would prefer Abersychan School.

However for pupils that attend Pen y Garn, Torfaen council assigns bus passes to West Monmouth school.

Mrs Price said: “The council pulled down Trevethin School and left us with no choice but West Monmouth School.

“Charlotte wants to go to Abersychan as she knows people there and after visiting West Monmouth school she doesn’t like it.”

Mrs Price claims that out of the 38 children in Charlotte’s year six class, the majority of the parents have expressed that they also want their children to attend Abersychan School but can’t unless the council amend their policy with the bus passes.

Mrs Price added: “If they don’t change the policy then I’m going to keep my child at home.”

Pen y Garn School’s headteacher, Ann Roberts, said: “We co-operate equally with both schools but West Monmouthshire is the designated school following the closure of Trevethin School.”

A council spokesperson said: “The authority has a transport policy which has been in place for many years which states that free transport is generally restricted to pupils who attend their catchment area school and live more than two miles away.

“However, those pupils in Trevethin School at the point of closure, and the September 2007 intake, were promised and provided with transport to either West Monmouth or Abersychan Schools regardless of where they lived.

“Pupils after this would only receive transport to their catchment school. It has been possible to provide transport to some pupils in the intervening years through the concessionary scheme. These pupils are occupying spare seats but not entitled and therefore can be withdrawn at short notice.”