PARENTS could face a bill of almost £700 to send their child to faith schools in East Lancashire under new plans.

A consultation is set to be launched on Monday into the proposed removal of subsidies for denominational schools transport by Lancashire County Council.

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If the plans are signed off in the coming months, parents will see the cost for each child travelling more than eight miles to school on a bus rise to £692. The cost for an academic year bus ticket for a child travelling between three and eight miles will rise to £540.

Currently parents pay £505 per pupil towards the cost of running the services which sets the council back £1.1 million every year.

Ribble Valley MP Nigel Evans has blasted the proposal and called it ‘cruel’ and a ‘punishment on parents who want their children to have a faith-based education’.

Lancashire is one of the last councils in the country to subsidise denominational school transport, which local authorities are not legally required to provide.

If approved the subsidies will be removed from September and parents will no longer receive any assistance from the council.

Both new school starters and current students will not have access to a subsidised bus pass but pupils from low income families who attend their nearest school on the grounds of parental faith and meet the distance criteria will continue by law to receive transport support.

County Cllr Matthew Tomlinson, cabinet member for children, young people and schools, said: “We face an unprecedented financial challenge as a result of relentless cuts in central government funding combined with a rising demand for our services, which means we’ve had to take a number of extremely difficult decisions.

“We’ve had no choice but to propose cutting a number of services that people value, because the council simply can’t afford to deliver them anymore.

“The provision of discretionary denominational transport is one of these services.

“I know that no one wants to either lose free transport or pay more for it, but unfortunately we are in the position of having to take these difficult decisions.

“I'd encourage parents and other interested parties to take part in the consultation to tell us how they might be affected by this change.”

The consultation, which will opens on Monday, and closes on Monday April 11.

Mr Evans said: “This is absolutely shocking and the council is attacking parents who are wanting their children to benefit from a faith-based education.

“This plan is appalling and I will raise this with government ministers.”