About Elderson Coaches

Part of Charles Kenward Motors Ltd, Bromsgrove, Worcestershire

01527 875432
07718 766839
info@eldersoncoaches.co.uk

About Us

Elderson Coaches is the classic coach hire operation of Charles Kenward Motors Ltd.
Sharing a lifelong interest in classic vehicles of all kinds, and coaches and buses in particular, director Charles Kenward and stepson Luke Smith acquired their 1975 Bedford coach in 2007.(More info HERE).

In the wake of hearty interest in the vehicle, (and a number of enquiries about hiring it!) a licence to use the vehicle for hire and reward was applied for and granted in 2009.

The name "Elderson Coaches" is, of course, a play on words! Charles has two sons, of which Luke is the elder, hence "elder son" coaches seemed ideal!

We hold a full "Standard National"
Public Service Vehicle Operators' licence
for coach hire operations.

Born in “the 1950s” Charles Kenward (universally known as “Charlie”) has lived in Bromsgrove and been inextricably linked with motor vehicles all of his life... He remembers helping his father maintain his fleet of Austin and Bedford coal lorries since... Well... since he can remember!
With his first car at the age of seven, employment at various local garages from his early teens and subsequent mechanical apprenticeship he seemed destined to work with vehicles of all kinds.
His link with coaches began in the early 1970s when he obtained his PSV driving licence with Harris Coaches in Catshill for whom, in spite of having subsequently driven many thousands of miles to Grand prix, the Le Mans 24 hour race, tours of Paris, Amsterdam, the South of France, and numerous other European destinations, he has only ever worked "part-time"! He was often to be found working on their vehicles, and all of this in between his full-time regular job as a mechanic.
As if that were not enough, coaches "in the family" are not a new thing as he and his friends were owners / custodians of two privately run coaches during the 1970s and early 1980s- Both extremely rare, one was a Burlingham Seagull bodied Ford, and the other a Midland Red motorway coach (Click the links to see further information!)
In 1986 he and wife Annette founded their own business in a small workshop on the Aston Fields estate which has steadily grown ever since. He is the mechanical brains of our coach operation and is responsible for all matters related to maintenance and repair (we even let him drive occasionally...). He is still obstinately reluctant to have time off, but when he does, he enjoys sailing and cooking!

Luke Smith was born at a very early age and has lived in the same body all of his life... Having grown up living with his stepfather, Charlie, it seemed inevitable that he would be affected by the exposure to coaches and motor vehicles and this has manifested itself as a keen interest in the vehicles of his childhood, and may have had more than a passing effect on his current choice of profession as a bus and coach driver! Having worked in various other fields, he obtained his driving licence with Dudleys’ Coaches of Inkberrow, where he worked for a few months in 2006, prior to moving to Johnsons of Henley in Arden, where he remains presently employed. With enduring childhood memories of being on and around coaches and lifelong interest in them, it seemed a natural progression for Charlie and he to buy one of their own! Among his list of responsibilities are: driver, transport manager, promoter, website designer, vehicle cleaner, -washer, -painter, -polisher, -carpenter, booking clerk and anything else we don’t have someone to do! As well as his obvious enthusiasm for classic and vintage vehicles, his other interests are real ale (if not driving), live music, playing banjo and guitar and occasional forays into amateur radio. (If you are especially unfortunate you may stumble across him "peforming" at Bromsgrove Folk Club...)