Community Transport and Shopmobility volunteering application
Please help us! Community Transport Operators are always in real need of Volunteers.
If you can offer time to drive or be a support staff in any of our buses or administrative role even if it’s just a few hours a week, to help someone less fortunate than yourself, then we would love to hear from you. Training will be given at no cost to yourself.
Volunteers play an essential part and contribute in a major way to the success of Community Transport generally, and without your support, only a fraction of the services that we deliver could continue to be delivered.
Currently across the service area, volunteers help with work organized from community transport offices – by driving to scheduled destinations, providing support, and assistant / companion duties, and assisting individuals and groups when their individual bookings occur.
Jump to:
Volunteering opportunities
- Drivers
- Taking bookings
- Administration
- Fundraising activities
- Passenger Assistants and Support staff.
Volunteer role description
We are looking for volunteers that would like to make a difference to the lives of people that live in the West of England region.
The role involves supporting residents to get out and about to the following:
- Trips for food or shopping
- Social outings
- Health related trips
- Community groups or clubs
- Recreational or sports activities
- Visits to friends or relatives
Getting people out and about helps in the following ways:
- Enables independence
- Reduces social isolation
- Promotes social life and community interaction
- Has a positive effect on health and wellbeing
There are different types of Community Transport schemes operating in the West of England Combined Authority region that need volunteer drivers/passenger assistants and support colleagues. These schemes include:
- Car Share Schemes – this is where volunteers use their own cars to drive someone wherever they need to
- Community bus services use volunteers who – with training – drive a mini-bus on scheduled trips as outlined above
- Door to door – where driver collect passengers/members from their home address straight to their destination which could be the doctor surgery, shopping, visits to friends etc.
- Day trips – this includes group trips to restaurants, day centres, recreational centres etc.
- Minibus hire – Drivers/passenger assistants and or support staff might be needed to facilitate and take a group to events and activities including bingo
What we require from our volunteers:
- A commitment of 6 months volunteering
- A valid, clean driving license
- Access to your own roadworthy car (for Car Scheme)
- Valid Insurance (For car scheme)
- Agree to have a DBS check
- Reliability
- Positive and patient attitude
- Respect for others and equal opportunities
What we can* offer our volunteers:
- Induction
- Training (to drive a minibus)
- Expenses
- Chance to make a real difference in the lives of otherwise isolated people
- Opportunity to give your ideas and thoughts to the Community Transport Working group and meet other volunteers.
- Further development opportunities
- Reference after 6 months of volunteering
