Lingfield and Dormansland are tucked away right in the south eastern corner of Surrey. We are essentially on the boundaries of four counties and have no secondary school within three miles of either village. The closest schools are all within large towns and are oversubscribed by local children and thus, the end result is no secondary school for our children. Lingfield and Dormansland Primary Schools used to be included within the catchment area of Oxted School but the local education authority is attempting to redraw that catchment area to exclude the rural communities of Lingfield and Dormansland.
This proposal is undergoing a public consultation period until the end of January.
The council is suggesting that rather than travel the 8 or 9 minutes on the direct train to Oxted (both Lingfield and Dormansland are on the same rail line as Oxted and are two and three stops respectively away) our children (some as young as 11) should travel to Horley, by train, via East Croydon. That journey can take upto 75 minutes each way. This is, quite frankly, a ridiculous suggestion and to make matters worse - they travel through Oxted to get there.