'Limited bus routes and railway stations leave young people excluded from opportunities at college' says Shrewsbury MP

Shrewsbury MP Julia Buckley has made a rallying call for further funding for colleges in rural areas to combat what has been locally dubbed 'A-level tax'.

She raised alarming concerns that families are having to fork out £750 on average for bus travel to college.

During a Westminster Hall debate on educational opportunities in semi-rural areas, Mrs Buckley told MPs that the Shrewsbury Colleges Group supports more than 10,000 students and is the sixth-largest college in the country.

She said closures of sixth forms at schools in the region has led to centralisation in the region which has presented challenges surrounding transport for rural residents. 

Mrs Buckley said young people have been "excluded" from opportunities at college due to Shropshire having limited railway stations and losing more than 5,000 bus routes in the past 12 years. 

The Labour MP said she had spoken with a hairdresser in Broseley who aspired to pursue an engineering apprenticeship but, due to there being no buses to where this course was offered, she opted to move into hairdressing at a site within walking distance of her home. 

Speaking in the debate, Shrewsbury MP Julia Buckley said: "My concern for Shrewsbury focuses on educational opportunities for 16- to 18-year-olds, in terms of both funding and geographical access. My local provider map will probably mirror that of many other semi-rural areas - the constituency serves the whole county of 19 market towns, and in recent years there has been a domino effect as smaller schools have closed down their sixth forms, leading to a centralisation in the county. 

"As a result, Shrewsbury Colleges Group now supports more than 10,000 students. It is the sixth-largest college in the country, offers a wide range of courses, and was recently graded as 'Outstanding' by Ofsted.

"However, the situation presents geographic barriers to those aged 16 and 17 who live across the county in those smaller villages, due to the lack - as we have heard - of public transport. 

"In Shropshire we have limited train stations and we have lost more than 5,000 bus routes in the past 12 years, leaving many young people excluded from opportunities. One example was a hairdresser I met in the village of Broseley. I asked her why she became a hairdresser, she said that she had really wanted to do an apprenticeship in engineering, but there were no buses, and this was the only apprenticeship she could walk to. 

"There is poverty of opportunity where young people reduce their aspirations to match their transport options.

"That is depressing enough, but even where there is a bus between towns, the average annual ticket costs £750. It is known locally as the 'A-level tax', and for many families it is completely unaffordable. However, many rural colleges do not receive additional funding to help with the bursaries they offer. 

"Colleges such as Shrewsbury combine both A-levels and FE [Further Education] courses, yet they fall between the two stools when it comes to funding. I urge the minister to review the anomaly whereby sixth forms and FE colleges receive funding, but where the two are combined, as they often are in rural areas, they miss out on crucial funding."