Chelmsford Community Transport

Update: December 2023

Chelmsford Community Transport has merged with Community360, bringing Colchester, Maldon and Chelmsford Transport Services together to address inaccessibility to services, activities and facilities.

You can find out more on the Community360 website.

---

About CCT

Chelmsford Community Transport is a charitable organisation that has been operating since 1996 and currently has 1382 members. The service is open to all residents in Chelmsford and provides transport, including hospital trips to help less mobile people get out and about in the local area. All journeys must start and ideally finish within the district of Chelmsford and cover most kinds of journey, including shopping, social, recreational and medical, subject to availability. Our services aim to overcome transport barriers and enable everyone to participate more fully in society.

Services

- Hospital Transport that members book in advance and use for free with their bus pass.

- A range of Door to Door transport services designed particularly for people who find it very difficult or impossible to use public transport by reason of age, disability, social or rural exclusion.

- Minibus Hire open to voluntary and community groups needing accessible transport. Groups can hire our vehicles for an annual fee of £20 and additional mileage costs.


We operate a fleet of five Mercedes wheelchair accessible minibuses and we also have 30 volunteer drivers who use their own four door saloon cars on a daily basis from Monday - Friday 9 - 5pm.

Members pay an annual membership fee and a small contribution based on a sliding scale to be paid for each journey, usually with a minimum of two days' notice. We also distribute a quarterly newsletter and organise regular excursions for members such as trips to Bluewater, Dance Nights and visits to garden centres.

Team Leader, Roger Chaplin explains
"This vital service is a life-line to our members and we rely heavily on volunteers and funding to continue to offer independence and dignity to those who would otherwise feel isolated and lonely within their own homes.

Overall, demand for community transport is expected to rise, due to the growth in the population of older people and changes to the supply of patient transport services within Chelmsford. This is why it is even more important we keep this service available. Without volunteer drivers, in particular minibus drivers, we would not be able to offer the amount of journeys that we currently do."


Why volunteer?

You may be between jobs, recently retired or just have a morning or afternoon to spare once a week; whatever your reason - volunteering is Fun!
You get to feel great about yourself, do something incredibly useful and meet and interact with new groups of people you might never have met! We are always keen to recruit new volunteers, including office staff, event assistants and particularly regular or ad-hoc minibus drivers.

To be a minibus driver you will need to have a category D1 on your clean driving licence and be willing to undergo training on the vehicle, which looks excellent on a CV! We will also need a current CRB check and out of pocket expenses will be paid to you.

If just five people offered just one day a week, we could regularly operate one more minibus, which would mean many more journeys being completed per week.
That means many more mobile people out and about in Chelmsford, continuing to enjoy their activities and socialising, regardless of the difficulties that can sometimes prevent them from carrying out their normal routines.

Phyllis Choppen is a member of Chelmsford Community Transport; "It is a lifeline to so many Senior Citizens. The service it provides gives us a degree of independence, a sense that we are still out there in the real world, and not just sitting at home vegetating, dependant on lifts from others."

We also rely on volunteers who use their own transport. Volunteers should have their own 4 door car and be able to give preferably one day a week, hours are flexible. You would need to be fit enough to give help to our members, have a clean driving licence and also undertake a CRB check. Expenses are paid per mile and full training is given.

Fundraising

CCT could not operate without funding from Essex County Council, Chelmsford City Council and regular donations from our sponsor, Caring Direct, but we still need more funds to keep the service running.

Clair Dade, Marketing & Events Assistant is planning a fantastic programme of events that all members of the public can participate in. "We have a range of fundraising events lined up for the New Year that we hope Chelmsford residents will enjoy getting involved in and be excited to attend. Keep checking our website and Facebook page as new events will be added regularly; we will also be expanding events and excursions exclusively for CCT members."

If you would like to volunteer for this vital service then please contact us on 01245 477789
Community Transport Bookings - 01245 477750
Hospital Transport Bookings - 01245 477700
Email - info@chelmsfordct.org www.chelmsfordct.org

---

Recent Articles