School Bus Services

Flagfinders School Bus Services

Flagfinders operate a range of bus and coach services on behalf of local schools and colleges. We also transport students to and from school on behalf of Essex County Council. We are now part of the Transport Made Simple Group, and have made a number of changes to our school bus networks for the forthcoming academic year. Please read this information carefully before attempting to book transport with us, as you may need to book with a different operator, or contact Essex County Council, even if you travel on one of our vehicles.

If you are entitled to free home to school transport from Essex County Council, you should have received a letter from them confirming this. If a letter has not been issued, transport has not been approved by the Council. We cannot assist with queries in relation to this; you must contact Essex County Council directly - https://www.essex.gov.uk/schools-and-learning/schools/school-transport.

Please note that all bus passes purchased online are strictly non-refundable and non-transferable, under any circumstances. You can choose to pay termly. However, the balance for the Spring term must be paid at October half term, and the balance for the Summer term must be paid at February half term. It is no longer possible to purchase a discounted bus pass for Year 11 or Year 13 students.

If you previously travelled on route 716 to Colchester schools, please be advised that this route has now been renumbered to route 826.

If you previously travelled on route 223 to Hedingham School, please be advised that this route has now been renumbered to route 60, and extended to operate all day, between Braintree, Halstead, Sible Hedingham and Sudbury.

We will continue to operate transport to Ridgewell Primary School and Steeple Bumpstead Primary School on behalf of ACME Transport Services. We will no longer operate transport to Stour Valley Community School; passengers should contact De Vere Travel Group for further information. We will no longer operate transport to Tabor Academy on behalf of ACME Transport Services; passengers should contact 24x7 Limited for further information.

Please do not contact the Flagfinders office for information about any of the bus services on this page. All queries must be sent to our Customer Services team by email. They can be contacted on contact@central-connect.co.uk. We do not offer any telephone support for home to school transport services. Please do not telephone us, as we will not be able to help you over the phone. There are no exceptions to these arrangements.

Colchester High School

Flagfinders operate the Danbury coach route to Colchester High School. For further information, and to make a booking, please refer to the school website at https://www.colchesterhighschool.co.uk/transport-to-school/.

Forest Hall School

Students travelling to Forest Hall School will be allocated seats on routes 830, 831 or 832, which will be operated on our behalf by Central Connect (Galleon Travel 2009 Limited). Further details will be available here when known. Please do not contact us regarding transport to Forest Hall School; you will be contacted directly once the route planning process has been completed.

Helena Romanes School, Great Dunmow

Students travelling to Helena Romanes School can purchase seats on routes 827 and 828. Sales are now open.

Honywood School, Coggeshall

Students travelling to Honywood School can purchase seats on routes 814 and 815. Sales are now open.

If you are entitled to free home to school transport from Essex County Council, and have received your letter confirming this, we will be in touch in late August. You do not need to book.

Great Easton Primary School

Students travelling to Great Easton Primary School will be allocated seats on route 833. Further details will be available here when known. Please do not contact us regarding transport to Great Easton Primary School; you will be contacted directly once the route planning process has been completed.

John Warner School

Students travelling to John Warner School will be allocated seats on route 801, which will be operated on our behalf by Central Connect (Galleon Travel 2009 Limited). Further details will be available here when known. Please do not contact us regarding transport to John Warner School; you will be contacted directly once the route planning process has been completed.

New Hall School

Flagfinders operate the Sible Hedingham coach route to New Hall School, in Chelmsford. For further information, and to make a booking, please go to www.newhall.vectare.co.uk.

New Rickstones Academy, Witham

Students travelling to New Rickstones Academy can purchase seats on route 819. Sales are now open.

If you are entitled to free home to school transport from Essex County Council, and have received your letter confirming this, we will be in touch in late August. You do not need to book.

Notley High School, Braintree

Students travelling to Notley High School can purchase seats on route 814. Sales are now open.

Ramsey Academy, Halstead

Students travelling to Ramsey Academy can purchase seats on routes 817 and 818. Sales are now open.

If you are entitled to free home to school transport from Essex County Council, and have received your letter confirming this, we will be in touch in late August. You do not need to book.

Thurstable School

We continue to work with Essex County Council to finalise transport arrangements for Thurstable School. If you wish to purchase a ticket for Thurstable School, please check back here in late August, for further details.

Please do not contact the Flagfinders office for information about any of the bus services on this page. All queries must be sent to our Customer Services team by email. They can be contacted on contact@central-connect.co.uk. We do not offer any telephone support for home to school transport services. Please do not telephone us, as we will not be able to help you over the phone. There are no exceptions to these arrangements.

• Getting Children to School: We will be working with the Local Education Authority and schools to ensure we follow the guidance available to secure the safety of drivers and students when they travel on school transport.

  Using our home to school transport:  As far as is logistically possible we will group children on the vehicles to reflect their year groups in school, however, on some journeys this may not be possible. for example service runs open to the public.

  Downstairs -        Year 7/8/9 (year 9 can be a split group)

  Upstairs -      Year 9/10 /11/12/13

  Boarding a Service: It’s important that you arrive at your bus stop 5 minutes before departure.  Please wait and queue in an organized manner. When boarding the vehicle from your designated stop please board one passenger at a time and have your bus pass ready to show the driver.  Please don’t push and keep to your own space.

  Disembarking a service: Double Decker -Students from the bottom deck will depart first followed by the top deck starting front to back.  Please don’t push, be patient and respectful to all students.

  Single Decker Coach/Bus - Please depart the vehicle front to back.   Please don’t push, be patient and respectful to all students.

  Behaviour:  Responsible behaviour when travelling on school buses is of paramount importance. It is imperative that all students observe the conduct expectations set out by Flagfinders, particularly regarding the seating areas assigned to specific year groups.

   Incidents on school transport will be dealt with in liaison with the Local Education Authority, schools and Flagfinders and could include in a verbal reprimand, a letter to parents, a fixed term ban from school transport or a permanent ban from school transport.

   We ask for your help in:

  • Staying in your seat whilst the vehicle is in motion.

  • NO VAPING AT ANY TIME ON THE VEHICLE - ITS ILLEGAL.

  • ANYONE SEEN VAPING RISKS LOSS OF TRAVEL.

  • Respect your space and those around you on the vehicle.

  • Do not distract the driver and respect their personal space

  • Try to stay in control of your belongings.

  • Keep your bus pass safe & do not pass it to another pupil.

  • No food or drink to be consumed on the vehicles

  Ventilation: Good ventilation is an important component to reduce the spread of viruses in confined spaces.  Well ventilated spaces help prevent the build-up of viruses and reduce the risk of transmission. We encourage passengers to keep some windows open to help improve the natural ventilation on the vehicles.

  We thank you for taking the time to read this.  Please can you reiterate to you child the importance of following these guidelines as it will protect us all going forward.

  If you have any queries please call the main office on 01376 320501