Four strikes and you're off!

Youngsters travelling to Fulford School now face suspension from the bus service if they are caught disrupting passengers, distracting the driver or behaving in an unruly manner.

Each offence will see a corner of their pass cut off. If all four are clipped it will no longer be valid and access to the bus will be refused for a set amount of time.

Head teacher Stephen Smith said that although the majority of pupils were well-behaved, there were occasions when the poor behaviour of a few risked other passengers' safety and the school's good name.

He said: "Each time the pupils receive a strike, their parents will be informed. There is a responsibility on their part to make sure that their child's behaviour is suitable."

Peter Edwards, commercial manager for First York, said the company welcomed any action by schools to ensure the behavioural standards of students who travelled on their services.

"We have a fairly good working relationship with Fulford School generally, and we are very supportive of those schools who are prepared to take an interest and help us in maintaining order on the buses," he said.

Mr Edwards said that bus routes with a regular driver tended to suffer less disruption than those without, as staff could build a relationship with pupils. He said he was not aware of any particular problems with Fulford students.

Dennis Fletcher, of Malton coach firm Fletcher's Coaches, which provides school bus services in Ryedale, said today that pupils were generally well behaved, but when one did misbehave the matter was always referred to head teachers, who were fully supportive.

He said pupils had sometimes been suspended from using the school bus.

Mark Ellis, City of York Council's principal education officer, said: "In the past, pupils have been suspended from buses for a period of time and they can also be excluded from school.

"Just because they are entitled to free transport doesn't mean they can misbehave."

Updated: 10:27 Tuesday, September 30, 2003