TRANSPORT chiefs say new tenders for school bus services in North Oxfordshire, which were hit after another bus company closed, will be going out early next week.

Bowen Travel Group, which owns Brackley-based school bus company Jeffs Coaches, went into administration on Thursday.

Jeffs Coaches ran routes to Cropredy Primary School, St John’s Primary School in Banbury, Blessed George Napier School in Banbury and Magdalen College School in Brackley, Northamptonshire.

Oxfordshire County Council said 178 pupils were transported on the routes.

The collapse comes just weeks after Witney-based firm RH Transport, which ran a range of services including school buses, went bust.

County council spokesman Paul Smith said: “The council will go to tender for the six affected bus routes early next week.

“The half term break and the fact that we are talking about six school bus routes rather than more than 40 school and non-school routes means that this exercise is not quite as time sensitive as the one that was required following the RH Transport situation earlier this month.

“Nonetheless we aim to have everything sorted out and clearly presented to schools, pupils and their families before the start of the first weekend in November.”