11 Plus Exams Forum

Could anyone advise me on the distance from the station to the boys school. Can you walk it or must you get a bus? Are the buses frequent and how long would the journey take?
I'm trying to work out the total journey time for DS if he was to go to this school.
Thanks

Hi
It is quite a walk, to be honest, some of it up hill. Trying to estimate a time for you: I think 25 of brisk walking is optimistic. I think the bus would be a more realistic option but I don't know what the level of service is. Good luck to you and you DS.

There are plenty of buses. The 65 (first buses) service alone has one every 10 minutes, and basicly everything going past the station in the right direction will take him to the high street. However most boys get off the buses at the high street(outside William and Griffin) and walk from there as after that the 65 goes to the bus station, sometimes sits there for a while while the driver changes/refills his drink! before setting off again. Girls have to stay on as their school is a long way out. DS only stays on if the weather is dreadful as he says its quicker to walk from there! The advantage of the 65 over some of the other buses is that he can get on outside the school in the evening.

DS says he would need to be on a bus just after 8am to guarantee to get to registration on time after that it is "pushing it" (his words). On timings bear in mind in the evening that CRGS is the last school on the pick up run for the buses and so DS often isn't allowed on the first that comes along (as its too full).

Education - don't forget the Consortium contract buses - details are on their website. For us if DD gains a place at ColCHSG then this is the transport method we would prefer as we live close to the bus route.

we are also considering using the consortium bus for my son to travel from chelmsford to colchester if he were to get into CRGS. Can any parents whose DC are using this service share their experiences with us. How well do the children cope with the journey, how long is the journey & how do they participate in after school extra curricular activities (my son is an avid cricketer !) Also, does it tire them out too much for homework in the evenings
any advice & information would be appreciated.

DS uses a consortium bus. It's fairly reliable, takes a bit less than an hour and is (by all accounts) a sociable experience. After school activities are a problem. You'll have to make alternative arrangements on those evenings when DC has activities. For us that has always meant a car journey but it would be possible to use the public bus service ( if we had any idea how much it costs/whether change is given etc - although we could find this out if we had to). The bus journey is a lot less likely to make them tired for homework than watching late night comedy panel shows. Personal experience!

DS takes consortium bus to CRGS with a journey time of around an hour. Buses are old and frequently break down, although they transfer to other buses fairly quickly and he has never been late to school. DS walks to Colchester Town station (about 15/20 mins) and catches a train home on the days he has after school activities, and sometimes gets a lift home with friends. Bullying is, and has been, a problem on his bus.

Education - this make help you. You can specify CRGS, http://traveline.info/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Inmystride - what you mentioned about bullying has again raised this worrying issue for me. DD isn't the most social of children & has been described as 'vulnerable' Oh well, guess 1st March brings the big decision...

I've just asked DS about this. He says his bus is absolutely fine but has a friend who had trouble on another bus. He says it has stopped now but is hopelessly vague as to the nature of the bullying. Best I got was that he thought his friend's book got taken and that it was a Y10 (probably from CRGS) who did it. He doesn't even know which bus his friend takes. Lives in a dream world! I've now spoken to him about what he should do if it happens again.

My DS gets the 525 which starts in Chelmsford. He is currently in year 8 and it has only broken down once. The bus is a yellow bus and the driver is brilliant. If there is a problem and you or the bus are running late you call them or they text you. The standard of behaviour on the bus is good but in the event of it starting to deteriorate they contact everyone and ask them to have a word so it gets nipped in the bud. Anything left on the bus is kept by the driver and returned the next day. Can definitely recommend it.

We live out from Chelmsford so our DS doesn't have quite as long a journey but an extra 15 minutes each way would be perfectly manageable. Our DS has never complained about the journey and we are very pleased indeed with the service.