Surplus seat applications

• Allenbourn Middle School
• Blandford School
• Dorchester Middle School
• Ferndown Middle School
• Ferndown Upper School
• Lytchett Minster School
• Purbeck School
• Queen Elizabeth's School
• St Michael's Middle School
• Shaftesbury School
• Thomas Hardye School
• West Moors Middle School

If you require a surplus seat for travel to any other school in the Dorset Council area, please see the Dorset Council website for details of how to apply.

For the 2025/26 academic year we will be introducing a new process for the sale of our surplus seat passes. There will no longer be a waiting list, and passes for each route will instead be put on quantity-limited sale on the morebus app on the following dates:

• Friday 22nd August at 7pm
• Wednesday 27th August at 7pm

This page will be updated on each of these dates, detailing which routes have been put on sale, which routes are not yet on sale, and any routes which will not be going on sale due to being full, as well as guidance on any alternative options for routes which are full.

Unfortunately we are unable to predict in advance which routes, or how many seats for each route, will be put on sale on each date as this will depend on entitled student numbers and locations, which are not yet fully known. We will put as many routes as possible on sale on the first date, but routes where entitled student numbers are approaching the vehicle capacity or where significant route alterations are required will not be able to go on sale until the second date (or possibly later in a small number of cases).

Once on sale, passes for each route will remain on sale until the quantity limit has been reached. We will also open a waiting list for anyone who finds that their route is full, so that we can send a notification when addtional seats for their route (or any alternative options) become available. However as in previous years, we anticipate there being enough seats available in the initial sale for the very large majority of those wishing to purchase.

Please note:

• Details of latest routes and timetables for the schools above can be viewed here. These are subject to change in line with entitled student requirements so you should also re-check these details before purchasing.
• You should only purchase a surplus seat if your child is a non-entitled student wishing to travel on a dedicated school bus route. If the route you require a seat on is a public bus service, for example those listed here or similar services provided by other operators, you should instead purchase a ticket or pass from the standard ticket range of the relevant operator. If you believe that your child is actually an entitled student you will need to apply to Dorset Council - details of qualifying criteria and an online application form can be found here.  
• Unfortunately there is no guarantee of transport for non-entitled students and we cannot guarantee that a surplus seat pass will be available to purchase, or that transport will remain available throughout the year. Our obligation is to provide transport for all statutorily entitled students, and only where seats remain available can we sell passes to non-entitled students. We will do our best to offer passes to as many non-entitled students as possible, and we are usually able to accommodate the very large majority of those wishing to purchase. 
• If a seat becomes required by an entitled student at any point during the year we reserve the right to cancel a surplus seat pass and issue a pro-rata refund. However it is very rare for us to have to do this and we will only do so as a last resort.
• Routes, stops and timetables are subject to change at any point during the year if entitled student requirements change. Any changes will be communicated with as much notice as possible, either directly to parents or via the school. If a change results in a route no longer meeting the needs of a surplus seat passholder, the passholder will be able to choose between switching to a nearby alternative route (if available) or a pro-rata refund.