'Sad' Northamptonshire village school pupils appeal for help to replace vital minibus
Pupils and parents of a village school near Kettering have appealed for help to replace their much-used minibus after it reached the end of the road.
Loddington Primary School is one of the county’s smallest schools with fewer than 100 pupils on its roll – it also has no playing field.
Despite its size, the school provides students opportunities to take part in off-campus competitions and activities using the minibus.
But children have been left feeling sad and worried after their much-used minibus finally came to the end of its life.
Headteacher Helen Dowsett said: “We pride ourselves on giving the children as many first-hand educational experiences as possible.
"In order to do this, we rely on our minibus.
“The rising cost of transport means our minibus is essential to keep offering wonderful learning opportunities.
"To name a few planned for this year - a visit to Twycross Zoo, Irchester Country Park, Rushden nature reserve and multiple sporting competitions in Kettering. Unfortunately, we will have to cancel these, until we can afford a new minibus."
Members of Loddington School’s parent teacher association have been working to raise funds, anticipating the day they would need to replace the minibus.
Alternative travel by hiring a coach would be too expensive for the small number of pupils in each year group.
One pupil said: “Our Year 2 class is small and they can all fit on the minibus. It would be too expensive to get a coach all the time and we can use the minibus to go to different places in smaller groups.”
Parent Tansley Capps said: “We have been fundraising for over a year to try and raise enough funds for a new minibus.
"We have managed to raise £16,000 so far, but our minibus has now given up completely and we will need a significant amount more in addition to this before we will be able to purchase a replacement that will allow the school to have a bus for many years to come.
"When they found out the minibus was broken, they were sad and worried. The children use the minibus to travel to lots of sporting competitions but all that has had to stop.
“The school really prides itself on giving the children so many opportunities they otherwise may not be able to have.
“With the school only having 99 students, this is becoming more and more limited as to what us, as parents, are able to do and also why the fundraising has been much slower than that of larger schools.”
Parents have organised raffles, mufti days, a tuck shop, fairs, events and sales to raise the necessary £55,000.
Tansley said: “We are appealing to anyone who might be able to help in any way with our fundraising via a money donation, a raffle prize for Christmas, or even help to spread the word.
"We know times are tough at the moment but should you be able to donate or support in any other way to help us reach our goal please contribute or get in touch.”
To donate go to the Just Giving page at https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/loddingtonschool-minibus?utm_term=p3kGrZvdd.