Bus services to St Mary's in Menston and to three Bradford schools are likely to be withdrawn next year after a review of services subsidised by West Yorkshire Combined Authority (WYCA).
The SM25 service from Ilkley for pupils attending St Mary’s in Menston faces the axe, as does some services to Titus Salt School in Shipley, Beckfoot School in Bingley and Appleton Academy in Wyke from September 2026 as part of plans to “create a more equitable service across West Yorkshire”.
WYCA says there are “walking and cycling routes available” to pupils of some of the schools facing axed services.
But one Councillor has said school bus cuts are “not acceptable”.
But two previously under-threat services, for pupils attending Bingley Gramar School and St Bede’s and St Joseph’s, look to be safe for the near future.
Next Thursday, WYCA, which subsidises numerous routes, will decide whether to move ahead with changes that will see six services in West Yorkshire withdrawn.
The decision comes after more than 3,700 people took part in a consultation on the future of these subsidised services.
A report to the WYCA meeting says withdrawing the three Bradford routes would save £91,200 a year.
Listing the school services facing the chop, and explaining what alternatives are available, a WYCA release said: “The proposed services to be withdrawn are as follows:
Bradford
B50 Eldwick to Beckfoot School – Walking and cycling alternatives available
B99 Bradford city centre to Appleton Academy– Direct service bus alternatives available
S64 (Baildon to Titus Salt School) or S66 (Baildon Primary to Titus Salt School) – Walking and cycling alternatives available
Calderdale
C6 Crossley Heath Grammar – Direct service bus alternatives available
Leeds
S62 Cockburn School – Walking and cycling alternatives available
SM25 (Ilkley to St Marys Menston) – Direct service rail alternatives available
“The Combined Authority will work with local authority partners and schools to ensure that children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities are provided with transport.
“As the Combined Authority works towards creating the Weaver Network and bringing buses back under public control, the school bus network will be considered as part of this process to identify areas where public transport might make it easier for school children to use, and boost their confidence for using public transport, an important skill which will carry throughout their life.”
A report into the consultation says:
“The Combined Authority currently has arrangements in place for 328 buses which carry on average up to 20,000 pupils per day.
“The gross annual cost of these services at the time the consultation was being prepared in early 2025 was £18.99m a year, of which 45 per cent is funded by the Combined Authority, 30 per cent by fares income, 19 per cent by the Local Authorities and the remaining six per cent from schools and other funding sources.
“The Combined Authority’s current policy includes guidelines for value for money criteria (maximum subsidy of £2.35 per passenger trip from September 2025). This will be included in the new policy. Services that do not meet this criterion will be considered for withdrawal even if the service meets other criteria set out in the new policy.”
Chair of WYCA’s Transport Committee and Bradford Council Leader Councillor Susan Hinchcliffe said:
“It is vital that we provide safe and secure routes for children to get to school, and we want to ensure the policy is equitably applied across West Yorkshire.
“We will continue to engage with stakeholders and the parents and carers of the small number of children affected to ensure that every child has a suitable option to get to school.”
Mayor of West Yorkshire Tracy Brabin said:
“As we look to improve transport across West Yorkshire, we want to ensure services are equitable for all.
“We are working towards delivery of our Weaver Network which will ensure reliable public transport working alongside trains and walking and cycling routes, so whether it is school, work or leisure, wherever you’re going, we’ll get you there.”
Referring to cuts to the Titus Salt School service, Shipley Councillor Kevin Warnes (Green) said:
“It is critical that we maintain and expand our bus travel networks. Cuts are not an option.
“These transport links are essential to support local families and enable people to make sustainable travel choices.
“School bus services are a great help for Titus Salt parents and students and an important way of mitigating local traffic congestion at drop off and pick up times.
“The withdrawal of any of these services is simply not acceptable.”
On the planned Beckfoot service cut, Councillor Susan Fricker (Lab, Bingley) said:
“The proposals being considered by WYCA are not as extensive as previous proposals to change school bus services for Bingley, however the Eldwick to Beckfoot service is proposed to be withdrawn from September 2026.
“I’ll be speaking to the school and working to make sure that children and parents affected by this policy are supported as much as possible.”
Councillor Marcus Dearden (Ind, Bingley), said: “I’m surprised to hear that the B50 is due to be cut.“I’m not sure whether it is down to lack of students using the bus, or more concerning is WYCA going against its general policy of promoting the use of bus services and its long-term project of improving services by way of franchising.
“Of course the worry is WYCA may cut other school bus services next year which were passed over to them from Bradford Council.
“These cuts will result in extra vehicles clogging up the highways and possibly making it impossible for some students to access these schools.”
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