A parent whose child has to use the bus to get to school has said he won't be paying for them to travel on it anymore after prices were put up.

Mark Heath's two children travel from Boxford to Thomas Gainsborough School, in Great Cornard, on a service provided by bus company Beestons. 

Mr Heath wanted to send both of his children to the same school, despite living just outside of the catchment area.

Mr Heath said he will be taking his children to school in his own carMr Heath said he will be taking his children to school in his own car (Image: Mark Heath)

The service, according to Mr Heath, used to cost £5.50, but upon the return to school, he was told by his children prices had risen to £7.10 for a return ticket. 

This means for his children, he would have to pay £280 per month for them to use the bus.

"Beestons bus company has slowly increased the fares," said Mr Heath. 

"The last bus fare we paid in July was £5.50 return. They went off to school last week and we found that the fare had leapt by £1.50 each. 

"We won't be using the bus as I am not paying £300 a month."

A spokesperson for Beestons said the service is operated "entirely commercially".

Mr Heath said while he can accommodate drop-off alongside his wife, he described the situation as "less than brilliant".

He added that he can run his car for less than the figure it would cost to send his children to school every month. 

"It's not like we are completely in the middle of nowhere," continued Mr Heath. 

"It is literally five miles down the road to the school."

The Beestons spokesperson added: "Ever increasing costs within the public transport industry especially insurance and labour is causing a huge rise in costs for us all."