Pupils are causing hundreds of pounds' worth of damage as they travel in and out of Chelmsford on school buses.

Les Smith, who has run Fargo buses for the past 25 years, is constantly having to deal with upset drivers and damage to his buses, which serve several of the town's schools.

"There is absolutely no respect nowadays," he said. "At the end of last half-term, there was £300-worth of damage on one bus - all done in the 15 to 20 minutes they were on the bus going home.

"The other night, a seat was totally broke. Someone had used a sharp implement to cut it up.

"The damage has become so bad that we are taking legal advice to see if we can charge a levy divided between all the parents of children who use the buses."

The problem is not confined to Chelmsford.

The Arch Theatre Company has been visiting eight schools across Essex with a production focusing on bad behaviour on buses.

Essex county councillor Ron Williams, cabinet member for highways and transportation, said of the council-sponsored productions: "The workshops are an excellent way of encouraging students to think about their actions and the consequences when travelling on the school bus."

At St John Payne RC School, a bus code has been developed and a named teacher allocated to each route so that bus monitors, who have no powers on the bus, can report any bullying or similar incidents.

Mr Smith said that Great Baddow High School had been proactive in trying to sort out the problem and contributing to the cost of cameras on buses.

Published Thursday November 14, 2002

Brought to you by the Essex Chronicle