THE headteacher of a Worcester school has hit out at the confusion caused over changes to transport funding.

Sean Devlin, principal of Blessed Edward Oldcorne Catholic College, said he and parents were under the impression that subsidised travel for those choosing to send their children to a faith school was being scrapped.

However, as reported in your Worcester News earlier this week, Worcestershire County Council said people had misunderstood the proposals and pupils would continue to be subsidised, although some parents will have to pay a larger contribution to the cost of their child's travel.

Mr Devlin said: "There should be complete openness and transparency.

"Many parents do not know where they stand. It is very confusing."

Mr Devlin said letters had gone out to parents from his school informing them that a consultation was taking place on plans to remove reduced rate tickets for vacant seats, denominational travel, and the discontinuation of the family ticket for denominational travel.

Parents believed that this meant there would no longer be any subsidised tickets for their children. However, it is only the reduced rate tickets which the council is looking to scrap, which are those tickets for families on low incomes - those who receive the maximum working families tax credit, or their children are in receipt of free school meals.

Under new legislation, these families will now automatically be entitled to free school transport, so the council says there will no longer be a need for the reduced rate ticket.

Many parents who receive subsidised travel for their children pay what is known as a full contribution rate ticket - not a reduced rate ticket. These tickets will continue to be available.

Colin Weeden, head of raising achievement and access to learning, said: "The council is consulting on the removal of reduced rate tickets for low income families as the Government is extending free entitlement for home to school transport to low income groups."