Red-faced bus bosses have apologised after a mother was thrown off a bus - because her toddler was crying.

The driver asked Susan Tanner to get off after becoming annoyed by little 15-month-old Tommy’s wailing.

The shocked 37-year-old had her older son, six-year-old Frankie, with her at the time.

Bus company Stagecoach admitted Miss Tanner was ordered off and it has since apologised.

Miss Tanner, from New Romney, said: “I am still in shock. I couldn’t believe it.”

Miss Tanner had boarded the 102 Stagecoach bus from New Romney at 12.30pm to take Frankie to Folkestone to buy him his new school uniform.

Tommy was feeling unwell, possibly coming down with a cold, and began to cry on board.

The driver stopped the bus at Sandgate village at 1pm and asked the family to get off.

Miss Tanner said: “The driver said: ‘Do you need some time out?’ I said what do you mean?

“He said: ‘Do you need to get off the bus because the baby is crying?’ I said no and I asked the other passengers if the baby was disturbing them. None of them said so.

“The driver then said: ‘It’s disturbing me and I would like you to get off the bus'. Frankie was so upset because he didn’t understand why his mum was thrown off the bus.”

The family had to walk on to Folkestone and Miss Tanner went to the bus station at Bouverie Square to complain to a Stagecoach official.

She said: “The man there said the bus driver had already been in and explained the situation, that my child was screaming on the bus.

"He said he had two witnesses who said that he was noisy. I asked him for my money back and he said I had to fill in a complaint form.”

The trip, with a total fare of £6.40, had been to buy clothing for Frankie’s first day back at St Nicholas Primary School in New Romney today.

The family were driven home from Folkestone by Miss Tanner’s partner.

A Stagecoach spokesman said: “We were very concerned to hear about this incident.

"We have carried out an investigation to find out what happened and can confirm that one of our drivers suggested Ms Tanner alight the bus.

“This is definitely not part of any company procedure or policy and we would like to offer Miss Tanner our sincere apologies for our driver’s actions.

"We will take appropriate action to prevent this from ever happening again. We have not yet received Ms Tanner’s formal complaint, but when we do we will reiterate this apology to her directly.”

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