don’t know about you, but many an hour of my childhood was spent playing in the local woods, making dens and having adventures.

Inevitably things have changed and for many children and teenagers, a trip to the woods is now just about non-existent.

It is to encourage students to get out of the classroom and into the great outdoors that the Woodland Trust have developed their Green Tree Schools Award.

6.500 schools are currently signed up for this free Award scheme. You can find more information on this by clicking here.

Obviously in order to visit woodlands you need a school minibus which is modern, safe, well maintained and ready to use at all times. And as minibuses get older so the need for repairs can rise.

Quite often it is impossible to buy a new bus just because the old one is starting to show its age – but a way around this can be found with the leasing of a new bus – with the lease including full maintenance and servicing.

If you would like to see what models are available or further information on minibuses in general, do take a look at our website – www.minibusleasing.co.uk/school-minibus.php

Alternatively give us a call on 01753 859 944.

Many schools are finding that the most effective way of ensuring that their pupils are involved in educational visits is by having their own school minibus.

However, when you think of a minibus for your school, your first thought may well be that they are so expensive to the point of being unaffordable.

This is a common perception, however many schools are now finding that a new school minibus is possible, but not by buying them, instead they lease them.

Leasing means that the cost of the minibus is spread over time with fixed monthly costs, and can be accounted for in the budget. The PTA can still contribute by raising money to pay for the monthly payments, etc, but there is no longer that long, long wait for the capital to be accumulated.

What’s more, through the leasing arrangement there’s a second benefit, for all the maintenance of the minibus can be taken on by the leasing company, thus keeping the vehicle fully operational at all times.

Additionally, where school trips are paid for by contributions from parents and the PTA, it is possible to allocate a part of those payments towards the cost of the minibus.

In other cases the minibus can be funded through a small monthly deduction from the school’s allocated income.

Not only will a new minibus help the school to expand education beyond classroom activities but it will also be a statement to prospective parents about the breadth and scope of the school’s vision.

Benchmark Leasing specialises in the supply and maintenance of school minibuses and because of this we are able to offer very competitive prices.

If you are interested in the benefits of a minibus do call us on 01753 859944 or click here to see what we can offer.

For many secondary schools the minibus is mainly used for transport to various sports fixtures, but it can also be an extraordinarily powerful PR message.

When a new minibus arrives, this demonstrates to parents just how committed you are to investing in the school.

What’s more, the parents will also be impressed and appreciative when they realise that they no longer have to transport their children to sports fixtures or to trips in the local area, especially without the additional cost of hiring a coach.

Obviously you need a school minibus which is modern, safe and itself a positive advertisement for the school – which is why Benchmark focuses on leasing minibuses.

The great benefit of leasing is that the purchase of the bus doesn’t come in one lump from school funds. Rather the bus is paid for as it is used by the school.

A further benefit is the fact that a new minibus is far less likely to have problems – plus you have the option of having a professional undertake all the standard maintenance and servicing.

This effectively reduces the onus that is put on the person who is nominated in the school’s transport policy to look after the minibus. Indeed, it was to overcome issues and difficulties such as this that we introduced full maintenance as part of our minibus leasing.

Not only do the schools that use our service get a new minibus without having to use current capital to buy it, but they have the comfort of knowing that qualified engineers have kept it serviced and maintained.

You can find more information on our website or give us a call on 01753 859944.

When it comes to venturing out in the school minibus, your first thought, of course, will always be for the students you’ll have onboard.

The second thought may well be to ensure that you have a mobile phone on you that contains relevant numbers and contact details in case of an emergency.

But what else should you consider?

Research has been completed with schools to find out what they carry with them in their minibuses. And the results make interesting reading.

Some ensure that they have details of what to do in an emergency printed out on laminated card which is always kept in the bus.

Others stress that they ensure that the phone also carries a relevant phone number which can be called should the bus be taking longer than expected to make the journey home at the end of the day.

This can be very helpful where this number reaches a person in the school who can contact parents to alert them to any delay – and it also means that if there is a problem the teacher only has to make one call, knowing the school will relay on all the details.

Insurance policy details are also included by most schools in their selection of items to take, to cover the unlikely event of the minibus being involved in an accident.

Next came the high visibility coat (BS EN 471) and the warning triangle which, although not compulsory in the UK, is compulsory in some countries such as France.

Interestingly, in France the regulation is that one must be able to get the jacket and put it on without getting out of the vehicle. It might not be the law in England but it certainly is a notion that makes sense.

A variation on the triangle (the portable flashing beacon) was also mentioned by some schools in their answers, and many stressed the need for a working torch – and a pen and paper. Seemingly obvious but given that not everyone mentioned them, presumably they are not always carried in every minibus.

Of course, above all this is the fact that we always need to be assured that the bus is in full working order before the party sets out. This is part of the service that schools which lease their minibuses from Benchmark automatically get – and if we ever spot something missing from your “must have” list, we do let you know.

Should you be looking to purchase or lease a new minibus please do call us on 01753 859944.

Alternatively you can find more information on our website.

Some schools feel they can’t afford even
one minibus. So how can other schools afford to
have two or three minibuses on the road?

That question might sound rhetorical – and if it does the chances are you believe the answer is obvious. Minibuses are expensive items and school budgets are too tight to afford one at the moment.

But the fact is that the real reason some schools don’t have the minibus they so urgently need is because they have not always had the chance to look at all the options.

In fact when it comes to minibuses there are three options available. You can buy a new minibus, buy a second hand minibus or lease a minibus.

Now I can understand any school not buying a new minibus – they are expensive and they depreciate over time. As for second hand buses, they can be quite problematic, and one can end up with far higher bills than one initially imagined.

But leasing is a different matter. Leasing is perceived by some to be expensive but is in fact just about the most cost effective approach to getting a new minibus that there is.

One of the reasons for this is that as a company Benchmark buys large numbers of minibuses from the manufacturers, and thus the cost of the minibus drops dramatically. So our starting prices are always very low.

What’s more if your traditional route has been the raising of money by the school PTA you can still use them to get the bus – you just use the money provided, month by month for the lease.

Which is a handy approach since it overcomes the problem of not being able to ask the PTA to raise the money again for the next minibus for a number of years. By which time your bus will be running up significant repair and maintenance bills.

But with a leased minibus – which as I intimated above is certainly going to cost far less than is popularly imagined – you not only get a brand new vehicle, you get additional services.

For example, the vehicle can be kitted out from the off exactly to your specification.

Also, if you wish and add the option to your agreement, we can come to the school and undertake safety inspections and/or maintenance on your site – so you don’t lose the bus for a day (as some leasing firms require) when the vital checks are undertaken.

We are able supply vehicles with your school crest on the side and can also supply bespoke racking and storage. Additionally we work in partnership with leading driver training experts enabling you to make best use of your staff and assets.

Pulling all this together, a brand new Ford Transit 15 seat minibus is available from less than £360 + VAT per month on a 3 Year, 30,000 mile fully maintained basis – that’s equivalent to just £83 + VAT per Week to lease a brand new, fully maintained minibus valued at over £29,000 + VAT!

If you would like to know more, please give us a call on 01753 859944 or email us at minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk

If at any time in the past you have ventured into the novels of Evelyn Waugh (“Decline and Fall,” “Scoop,” “Brideshead,” that sort of thing) you might remember the wonderful newspaper magnate Lord Copper.

Lord Copper had the habit of saying the most ludicrous things, such as “Fine democrat that Adolph Hitler”, leaving his poor underling, who was quite unable to disagree with his master, replying, “Up to a point, Lord Copper.”

Now, as you may know, an advertiser is never allowed to disagree with a potential customer, so if anyone does say to me, “The reason schools don’t lease minibuses is because leasing is so expensive,” I have been known to reply, “Up to a point.”

But the fact is that the real reason some schools don’t lease is because leasing is perceived to be expensive. Leasing is, in fact, just about the most cost effective approach that there is.

One of the reasons for this is that we buy large numbers of minibuses from the manufacturers, and thus the cost of the minibus drops dramatically. So our starting prices are always very low.

If your traditional route has been the raising of money by the school PTA then you may have to wait for a new minibus – which is always a shame.

And there is the problem that you won’t be able to ask the PTA to raise the money again for the next minibus for a number of years, and by then your bus will be running up significant repair and maintenance bills.

Indeed, if you try the alternative approach of buying a second hand bus you could be looking at those repair bills very quickly indeed.

But with a leased minibus – which as I intimated above is certainly going to cost far less than is popularly imagined – you not only get a brand new vehicle, but you also get additional services.

For example, the vehicle can be kitted out from the off exactly to your specification.

Also, if you wish and add the option to your agreement, we can come to the school and undertake safety inspections and/or maintenance on your site – so you don’t lose the bus for a day (as some leasing firms require) when the vital checks are undertaken.

We are able supply vehicles with your school crest on the side and can also supply bespoke racking and storage. Additionally we work in partnership with leading driver training experts enabling you to make best use of your staff and assets.

Pulling all this together, a brand new Ford Transit 15 seat minibus is available from less than £360 + VAT per month on a 3 Year, 30,000 mile fully maintained basis – that’s equivalent to just £83 + VAT per Week to lease a brand new, fully maintained minibus valued at over £29,000 + VAT!

If you would like to know more, please give us a call on 01753 859944 or email us at minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk

Of course, there are many reasons for winning or losing. The skill and ability of the players is a major factor, as are the coaching skills of you and your colleagues.

Luck comes into it too, at least in football, as the book “Why everything you know about football is wrong,” points out so graphically. But beyond this there could well be something else that is affecting the performance of your school teams.

Imagine your team travelling by minibus to a fixture and the minibus breaks down. Or maybe it makes the journey but it is extremely uncomfortable. Neither event is likely to make your team feel particularly well set for the match to come.

But you have a problem too. Minibuses are expensive, and you just don’t have the money in your fund, or indeed in any school fund, to buy a new minibus.

Which is why we have introduced the leasing of minibuses to schools as an alternative to the buying of the bus.

Further, this arrangement whereby we, as the company that leases out the minibus, are also in charge of maintenance resolves the particular problem of keeping the vehicle fully operational at all times.

Through leasing a minibus is simply paid for month by month. Where some visits and trips are paid for through contributions from parents and the PTA, it is very possible that the minibus can be funded without taking anything from the school’s capital account.

In other cases the minibus can be funded through small monthly deductions from various departments’ income. If half a dozen departments agree to fund the bus and the PTA agrees to put in a monthly amount as well, the funding problem could be completely resolved.

Benchmark Leasing specialises in the supply and maintenance of school minibuses. If you are interested in the benefits of a minibus do call us on 01753 859944 or click here to see what we can offer.

For many primary schools the minibus is used for the regular trips to the local swimming pool or to the various sports fixtures, but it can also be an extraordinarily powerful PR message.

When a new minibus arrives, this demonstrates to parents just how committed you are to investing in the school.

What’s more, the parents will also be impressed and appreciative when they realise that they no longer have to transport their children to sports fixtures or to trips in the local area, especially without the additional cost of hiring a coach.

Obviously you need a school minibus which is modern, safe and itself a positive advertisement for the school – which is why Benchmark focuses on leasing minibuses.

The great benefit of leasing is that the purchase of the bus doesn’t come in one lump from school funds. Rather the bus is paid for as it is used by the school.

A further benefit is the fact that a new minibus is far less likely to have problems – plus you have the option of having a professional undertake all the standard maintenance and servicing.

This effectively reduces the onus that is put on the person who is nominated in the school’s transport policy to look after the minibus. Indeed, it was to overcome issues and difficulties such as this that we introduced full maintenance as part of our minibus leasing.

Not only do the schools that use our service get a new minibus without having to use current capital to buy it, but they have the comfort of knowing that qualified engineers have kept it serviced and maintained.

You can find more information on our website or give us a call on 01753 859944.

For a large number of schools the minibus is extensively used for regular trips to the local swimming pool or to various sport fixtures.

Recently we have found that many schools are now actively thinking of additional uses for their minibus rather than waiting for there to be situations which call for the necessity of a minibus.

It would seem that Learning Outside the Classroom is having a positive impact and trips to places such as Shakespeare’s birthplace, the Jorvik Centre or The Science Museum in London are on the increase.

Of course all this activity depends very much on the minibus being well maintained and ready to use at all times. And as minibuses get older so the need for repairs can rise.

Quite often it is impossible to buy a new bus just because the old one is starting to show its age – but a way around this can be found with the leasing of a new bus – with the lease including full maintenance and servicing.

If you would like to know more about our leasing options take a look at our website.

Alternatively call us on 01753 859944 or email us at minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk

Of course there could be many answers to this question. I will offer just one. Opening a statement on school owned minibuses provided by Hampshire Local Authority the Authority said “A safe and reliable minibus can be an invaluable resource for a school or college”.

And I don’t think anyone is going to argue.

Now I mention this, not because there is anything to disagree with nor because the statement is remarkable in any way, but rather because the Authority has chosen to write “safe and reliable” at the very start of the document.

Such an assertion that the minibus must be safe and reliable in order to be an invaluable resource is hardly controversial. No one could possibly think the reverse.

But the fact that the Authority suggests it still needs saying shows that its members are as aware as the rest of us that there are a number of school minibuses in use which are anything but safe and reliable.

The reason for this is not hard to see. Indeed one only has to look at news stories in local papers which mention school minibuses to understand the problem.

The fact is that most school minibuses are purchased after various dedicated parents and supporters of the school have worked hard to raise the money to buy the bus.

And of course nothing can be wrong with such laudable activity! There isn’t anything wrong with fundraising to buy a minibus – until the bus starts showing signs of wear and tear.

But then the problems can really begin, as it would seem embarrassing to the point of heartlessness for the school immediately to start raising money all over again to pay for a major overhaul for the bus.

Indeed even a complete set of new tyres might have to be delayed if there is no money available in the budget.

Sadly, the fact is that many schools that do buy a minibus after a huge amount of hard work by supporters of the school tend to under-estimate the cost of maintaining the bus once it is over a few years old.

They then get to the stage where there is neither the money to pay for the repairs and maintenance needed, nor the funds to buy a new bus.

However there is a way around the issue and that is for the school to lease the bus. In this way the cost of the maintenance of the bus is known week by week, month by month and year by year. These costs can be built into the school’s budget, and so never come as a surprise.

Better still, everyone knows that when the lifespan of the bus comes to an end a new lease can be taken on meaning that as and when it wants to, the school can deal with the issue of the aging bus.

And meanwhile the school’s fundraising efforts can be centred elsewhere on other much needed equipment.

If you would like to know more about our leasing options take a look at our website.

Alternatively call us on 01753 859944 or email us at minibus@benchmarkleasing.co.uk