A High Wycombe mother has accused Buckinghamshire Council of having "f***ed up" her daughter's special educational needs transport arrangements, after paying more than £100 for September, only to be told the service may not begin until the end of the month.
The 37-year-old, who does not wish to be named, said her daughter has been left unable to attend school after delays and an alleged administrative error involving the council's transport team.
The mother, who has borderline personality disorder and is raising her daughter alone, said she submitted the necessary paperwork on July 9 for transport to three different SEND placements attended across four days a week.
However, she claims Buckinghamshire Council later recorded the travel requirement as three days instead of four, leading to weeks of phone calls and emails to try and resolve the issue.
Her daughter attends specialist provision in Flackwell Heath, Cookham and another site near the Buckinghamshire-Oxfordshire border, with journeys taking up to an hour and involving locations not easily reached by public transport.
The mother said she eventually received the correct payment link on September 2 and immediately paid £112.66, the first instalment towards the annual transport contribution of more than £900.
But she was later informed transport arrangements could take up to 15 working days to be put in place from the date payment was received.
She said: "I didn't f*** up. They f***ed up.
"I filled it in for four days. They made an error themselves."
"I've paid for the whole of September and she's not actually going to be going until October.
"They've just taken my money and not supplied the service.
"If we're paying a fee towards travel, travel should start from their first day back.
“Otherwise, why are we paying from the start if there's no travel from the start?"
According to the mother, private transport to the placements would be financially impossible.
"If I had to pay for her travel to get there and back, that's over £100 a day," she said.
"I literally can't afford to take her."
The mother, who doesn’t drive, said she made repeated attempts to contact the council throughout the summer, estimating she made dozens of phone calls, including one where she spent almost an hour on hold.
She also claimed a member of the transport team acknowledged that communication between departments was poor.
The delays have left her daughter, who is autistic, upset and unable to begin a new stage of her education.
"She's extremely upset," the mother said.
"She was nervous about going but also excited.
“Change is very difficult for people with autism and now she's just been let down."
Calling for improvements, she added: "They need to sort it out.
"If it's happening every single year, they need to find a solution."
Responding, Buckinghamshire Council deputy leader and cabinet member for transport Thomas Broom said: "Buckinghamshire Council arranges home to school transport for more than 8,500 children and young people who are eligible for travel assistance.
"Arrangements for young people aged 16 and over can be particularly complex at this time of year due to changes following exam results, confirmation of education placements and timetable updates.
"Our teams work hard to put transport arrangements in place as quickly as possible.
"We are in direct contact with the family concerned regarding their child's transport arrangements.
"Due to confidentiality, we are unable to comment further."
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