PARENTS from a North Yorkshire village, locked in battle with County Hall over a school bus service, have called on their MP to intervene.

The row, which has led one experienced parish councillor to resign, seemed to have been defused just before the half-term break.

The county council was offering a compromise, which senior officials hoped would take the heat out of the debate.

However, it has not satisfied parents from Maunby, who claim their children are still at risk, and they want Vale of York MP, Conservative, Anne McIntosh, to step in.

The dispute blew up when the school bus began dropping children on the edge of the village rather than in the centre, leaving some with a longer walk home.

Some parents were worried that, with the nights drawing in, youngsters walking in the dark would be at risk from lorries and tractors which regularly use the country lanes in the area.

However, when they approached North Yorkshire County Council to highlight the situation, it emerged that the new stopping point had been agreed with the parish council.

The village administration was concerned that the school coach, which is bigger than that previously used on the route, was churning up the village green, and had requested a new stopping point as a result.

An angry response from the parents was enough to persuade County Hall to consider another solution - and parish councillor Ron Leyland to stand down.

As the local pub landlord has refused to allow his car park to be used as a turning point, officials are now suggesting that the bus stops and turns around at the entrance to Green Lane Farm.

But the compromise has not been enough to satisfy some parents, who have written strongly-worded letters both to County Hall and Ms McIntosh.

Spokesman for the parents, Nigel Morgan, said: "There is no footpath through Maunby, the street lighting is extremely poor and the children will still have to walk on the road which is used by large agricultural machinery and horseboxes from two stables at either end of the village."

No one was available to comment on the county council's behalf as The Northern Echo went to press