Families say they will have to hire out halls and pay tutors to teach their children who were given secondary school places more than 20 miles away.

More than 15 parents living on Sheppey gathered in Warden Village Hall, on the north-east corner of the Island, last night to discuss the issue.

One mum revealed her 11-year-old son would have to set off at 5.50am by himself, catching two buses and a train to get to the school he had been allocated.

The meeting comes six weeks after 56 families were told their children had been given places off the Island.

Some were left raging when their children were allocated The Abbey School in Faversham, which is a 40-minute drive from Warden.

Kent County Council (KCC) announced two weeks later that 30 new places were being opened at Leigh Academy Minster, the former Oasis Academy.

However, it is understood that 26 families, some of whom live on the eastern edge of Sheppey, continue to face the conundrum of how they will get their children to school.

The east of the Island has limited transport links, with the nearest railway station being in Sheerness – a 20-minute drive away – which connects to the mainland via Sittingbourne. Sheppey is also one of the poorest areas in the country, according to the government’s latest deprivation research.

During the meeting, the parents discussed their next options with Sheppey councillors Elliott Jayes and Dolley Wooster, with some saying they would be forced to rent out a hall and hire a tutor to educate their children if the situation does not change.

One of the organisers of the meeting, mum-of-four Lorraine Joseph, said her 11-year-old son would have to catch two buses and a train to get to The Abbey School.

The 52-year-old explained that she does not drive, and her partner Tony Brum would be unable to take him due to his shift patterns, so the youngster would have to do the journey, which would start at 5.50am, alone.

They were offered The Abbey despite the Minster Primary School teaching assistant filling out all four preferences.

These were The Leigh Academy, Fulston, Westlands and The Sittingbourne School – the latter three are in Sittingbourne and have established bus links run by Travelmasters.

Ms Joseph, who lives in Warden, said: “It is unrealistic to ask a child to travel that far every morning.

“Even as the crow flies, which is over the water, Faversham is eight miles away, so I don’t understand how we fall into that patch.

“It’s also about safeguarding. I have been put in a position where I have to choose between my child’s education and their safeguarding.

“I have done everything KCC has advised me to do, but I am in the same situation as I was six weeks ago. It is a shambles.”

Meanwhile, Mr Brum, 63, fears the case could end up in court.

He said: “The council will take us to court for not sending him and we will ask the judge if they think it’s the right place for him to be.

“At the end of the day, they have to be accountable for doing it.”

Raychael Morley's 11-year-old daughter, Darcey Lee, was also given a space at The Abbey School.

The mum-of-two, who works full time for Royal Taxis, says the situation is “unfair” after being unable to get an Island school place, despite living in Warden for more than 20 years.

“I will fight this until I am blue in the face”, the 38-year-old said. “The Island is my home; my children were born here but they can’t get a school place.

“What am I meant to do?”

Minster parents, Chanttel Carrington, 40, and Barney McCoy, 48, were given a space at The Abbey, despite living in Chequers Road, which is just a stone's throw away from the Leigh Academy.

They both work full-time and would not be able to take their daughter, Ivy-Rose, to Faversham.

Mr McCoy, who works in London as a builder, said: “She could walk to Leigh Academy and she did not get a space. How does that make sense?

“I would have to give up work to take her to the school in Faversham. We want to send her to an Island school.”

Mum-of-three Lee-Anne Moore, who represents Swale council for Sheppey East and is chairman of Leysdown Parish Council, is also facing having to send her child to The Abbey.

She says she “felt I had failed as a parent” after not getting her 10-year-old into Leigh Academy.

She said: “When I got the email at 5pm on allocation day, I thought I had misread it as Island children have always been able to get spaces on the Island.

“There’s no way of me getting her to school, so she would have to travel alone.

“If we have to, we will have to put together [money] and rent out a hall and hire a tutor.”

KCC says in some cases, parents have chosen to keep their non-Island school offer despite a closer alternative being offered.

It says that parents should follow the advice in their offer letters with the next full round of offers coming on April 24.

A council spokesperson said: “We understand and sympathise with the concerns a small group of parents currently have on the Isle of Sheppey.

“The welcome change of secondary school providers in September 2024 means more families want their child educated on the Island than ever before.

“KCC has been supporting schools to help them respond to the surge in popularity.

“When it comes to school transport, deciding who is eligible is a statutory process and we apply the legislation in line with every other local authority.

“In law, parents are expected to name their nearest school. If they are offered another more distant school, they will qualify for school transport.

“School transport will be provided for children and young people who meet the statutory criteria.

“Parents can appeal if they think the law has not been correctly applied.”