Belstone to Okehampton College Transport Appeal

Although Devon County Council provides a school bus from Belstone visitor car park to Okehampton College, not all children living in Belstone village are considered eligible to use the bus.  

This is because Devon County Council has previously determined that some houses in the village are within a three-mile walking distance of the College because children could walk along Market Lane.  Local residents who know the area are aware that, as it is today, this route is completely unsuitable for children to walk to and from school.  It is unsafe, arduous and prone to becoming very muddy.  

The previous determination has created an unfair situation in which children living in the centre of Belstone must be driven to school by their parents, passing on their way a school bus that their close neighbours are entitled to catch. Devon County Council’s recent Climate Change Emergency declaration makes this situation even more indefensible due to the carbon impact of the unnecessary car journeys. 

• Local residents have signed this petition to attest to the fact that the Market Lane route is not a safe route to expect children to walk from Belstone to Okehampton School.

Ella Curnow and Sasha Bonnett    Contact the author of the petition