A DECISION to scrap a subsidised rail pass for 16-18 year olds is set to hit one Kendal school particularly hard.

Sixth form students travelling by train to Queen Katherine School had previously been eligible for a student rail pass on the Lakes Line, meaning a yearly pass would cost around £250 for a student travelling from Windermere.

Northern Rail has now decided to remove this option, leaving students to face the full cost of more than £1,000.

As a result, Westmorland and Lonsdale MP Tim Farron has written to Northern to call for the decision to be reversed.

"It is compulsory for students to be in education or training until the age of 18, yet students from rural areas will now face astronomical fees simply to attend sixth form," said Mr Farron. "This is utterly wrong.

"Students will have their choices dictated not by where they will be happiest or most successful, but instead by cost."

Cllr Clare Feeney-Johnson, a governor at QKS, blasted the move as 'ridiculous' and believes there should be more help from Government to help pupils get to school.

"There's a statutory need to be in education but everything that facilitates that is being removed.

"In large rural areas such as ours we don't have the luxury of a competitive market place for travel so the cost is far more expensive than in large urban areas.

"Schools are having to spend their budgets on these things because the Government is just not funding it."

A spokesperson for Northern said: “In order to keep a fair and unbiased approach to all schools and colleges across the north of England, it was decided to withdraw this particular educational season ticket offer.

“This decision was reached on a basis that is both non-discriminatory, commercially viable and practical from a logistical point of view, across our entire Northern network.

“However, we are investigating the possibility of introducing a residents’ discount card and if the proposal is deemed to be a viable alternative, it will certainly be something we will look into.”

Mr Farron has launched an online petition against the decision, which can be found at www.timfarron.co.uk/studenttraintickets.