CHILDREN from Royal Wootton Bassett are being ferried by taxi to schools in the villages because there are no places for them inside the town.

Currently 28 children are being sent off each morning to schools at Broad Town, Tockenham and Broad Hinton because they can’t get into Longleaze Primary, Noremarsh Junior or Wootton Bassett Infants.

Town councillor Paul Heaphy has highlighted the issue and fears the situation will worsen as more families move in to the housing developments springing up around the town, including the estates off Binknoll Road and Longleaze.

“Currently there are no spaces for these children in these three schools,” he said.

He said he had been contacted by people whose families had moved in, hoping their children could be educated locally, only to find they had to be driven to schools further away or stay at current schools elsewhere in Swindon.

“I really feel for them,” he said.

Coun Heaphy said people paid a premium to move to Royal Wootton Bassett and one of the reasons was the quality of education.

One family he knew of had moved to the town specifically so their child could move up to Royal Wootton Bassett Academy when they left primary education, but couldn’t find a space.

“We aren’t NIMBYs,” he said. “We have developed a neighbourhood plan which has been submitted to Wiltshire Council. In there we have placed provision of development land, which has residents’ support.”

Children having to be taxied out of the town and parents having to drive them because they couldn’t get into their local school means extra cars on the road.

And even though the academy was applying to build a new primary free school there would be a gap of some years before it was up and running.

The question of where it should be built was also causing concern because the bulk of housing development was in the south of the town rather than on the northern end where the academy was located.

However there was space to extend Noremarsh School, something he had suggested to Wiltshire Council.

A Wiltshire Council spokesman said: “We are transporting a small number of children to schools in the surrounding areas and this is due to either the families moving into the area with children in year groups which are now full, or sending in late applications after the normal application round has closed.

“We have a school places strategy which helps us continually monitor to ensure we have enough spaces in all areas and this indicates we have sufficient reception places for all the on time applications for September 2017.

“However the strategy also acknowledges the additional housing development in the area and we are supporting an application for a new primary free school which has been made by the RWB Academy and the outcome of that bid should be known this month.

“If approved this new school will be delivered by the Education Funding Agency.”