11 Plus Exams Forum

Ds will be using SBC coaches from Chelmsford to Westcliff as they have a pick up point 7- 10 minute walk from home.

For Stephensons he needs to go to the bus stop near the prison where the Colchester school bus also picks up from.

For First bus he needs to go to town.
So we have to take him to the stops for both which is manageable or he needs to walk but will take about 25 minutes but children do walk from there to his current school or he could use route no. 56 or 54.

So we chose SBC for the time being because it's near by and he'll be back home before the CSSE buses reach their stops.

I am looking into public transport for DS just in case he needs to stay after school for any activities. At the moment we have planned for DH to pick him up because the journey from Westcliff by public transport seems to be quite long at different times. But the Chelmsford railway station is only about 10 minute drive from home so, he could go there and DH could pick him up. When he is older he could also walk through the woods.
I read somewhere on here that some have taken the public transport to ChCHS and KEGS from Southend. If anyone has gone through this or know about this and the timings please advice.
Thanks in advance.

Bus (Arriva 29 or First 21) from WHSB to Southend Vic - train to Chelmsford via Shenfield? Or bus to the Travel Centre and get theX30 or the Regal Busways 3? The latter can also be picked up at Chalkwell Park if he walks up to the stop there, but it's not very frequent. The X30 also stops near Kent Elms library, I think, but it is quite a traipse down from the school and it's only an hourly service.

The train is probably the best option: they run about every 20 minutes to Shenfield. That leg of the journey on its own would be just under £5 single, not sure about the through ticket to Chelmsford.

If you knew in advance when he would need to get public transport, you could buy the rail ticker with 'PlusBus' add-on for Southend in advance, to save your DS carrying so much cash.

That was helpful Toadmum especially about the tickets. I looked into it and the bus journey seems quicker than the train but if he misses one then he would have to wait for another hour for the next one. So the train seems ideal but he needs to take another one at Shenfield. Perhaps I should go with him first to familiarise?

I remember when I was 10 (Aw...) I travelled by aeroplane unaccompanied several times for the school holidays to where my parents lived (a campus in another country) at that time and there was someone guiding me most of the time throughout the journey. At one time my father hadn't received the telephone messages nor the telegram that was sent regarding my flight. So I was stranded at the airport for several hours but a nice young gentleman who worked there took care of me for some time and then another officer took over from him for a while till my father came who somehow got the message that I was at the airport waiting for him to pick me up.

Thanks to mobile phones I don't need to worry about that.

Happy to help.

Yes, I would try to do the journey with your DS the first time. Neither Southend Victoria nor Shenfield is a complicated station to use, but sometimes the timings are a bit tight. DS1 and I did Chalkwell to UEA yesterday (four trains and a bus going, mercifully only a bus and three trains coming back as we were picked up in Southend) and the booking gave us seven minutes to change at Colchester going out - which could have been a problem - and about twenty seconds coming back...

By the way, your childhood reminds me of a friend at school, whose father decided when she was about 13 to take a two year contract in what was then the Gilbert and Ellis (?Ellice) Islands - postal address, 'via Fiji' . A Universal Aunt - remember them, anyone? - used to put her on the flight at the London end, but after that, she was on her own.

Hi
My son is starting at Westcliff in September.

My son will be getting the number 20 bus from bridgewater drive to rayleigh and I know this is a very common route for the boys and girls at westcliff and southend. The number 20 goes to rayleigh station which is about a 15 minute journey and turn Rayleigh is on the same line as Shenfield, to change for Chelmsford.

Feel free to pm me if you want some more info
Jo

ToadMum wrote:

Happy to help.

Yes, I would try to do the journey with your DS the first time. Neither Southend Victoria nor Shenfield is a complicated station to use, but sometimes the timings are a bit tight. DS1 and I did Chalkwell to UEA yesterday (four trains and a bus going, mercifully only a bus and three trains coming back as we were picked up in Southend) and the booking gave us seven minutes to change at Colchester going out - which could have been a problem - and about twenty seconds coming .

Thank you for the encouraging words Toadmum.

ToadMum wrote:
By the way, your childhood reminds me of a friend at school, whose father decided when she was about 13 to take a two year contract in what was then the Gilbert and Ellis (?Ellice) Islands - postal address, 'via Fiji' . A Universal Aunt - remember them, anyone? - used to put her on the flight at the London end, but after that, she was on her own.

Jo_Pot wrote:Hi
My son is starting at Westcliff in September.

My son will be getting the number 20 bus from bridgewater drive to rayleigh and I know this is a very common route for the boys and girls at westcliff and southend. The number 20 goes to rayleigh station which is about a 15 minute journey and turn Rayleigh is on the same line as Shenfield, to change for Chelmsford.

Feel free to pm me if you want some more info
Jo

Thank you.