Caretaker Donates Bus to Beat Bureaucrats

School caretaker, Bob Owen, from Anglesey, North Wales has bought a 15-seater Volkswagen minibus, costing more than £10,000, for his school.

Not content with this supremely generous gesture, paid for entirely with his own money, the altruistic janitor has created the perfect finishing touch to the gift by adding a special number plate, to which his wife, Myra, also contributed.

Bob Owen, 61, has worked at Ysgol Llanfaw for more than 25 years so the plate had to include the school's initials (Ysgol Llan Fawr - which translates roughly as the words 'school', 'church' and 'large').

So, the plate he chose, A5 YLF , fits the bill perfectly and is conveniently completed by a clever reference to the 'A5' primary route on which the premises are situated at Caergybi, Holyhead.

Mr Owen took the decision to donate the vehicle in response to the recent legislation restricting the use of private vehicles for transporting children to sporting and social events.

Under the infamous 'Vetting and Barring Scheme', parents and volunteers are forbidden to provide lifts unless they first undergo individual stringent police checks. Bob feared that this would mean the end of many important and worthwhile extra-curricular activities, so he decided to take action himself.

Gwyn Williams, the school's headteacher is delighted by Bob's kindness and says, "Bob has been here for 25 years and done so much for the school over that time but to buy a bus is amazing. He did not do any fundraising for it and has just bought it out of his own money."

You may interested to read similar stories such as that of Bill and Lynn Morris who have the number T555 KSP on a Smart Car promoting the Kenyan Schools Project.

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