The Voluntary Transport Service

How do I register to use the service?

To use the scheme, passengers must complete a registration form which can be requested by calling 0115 969 9060, you can also download a registration form here. It costs £35 to register for the year or £45 for couples.
Temporary membership is also available, gives access for a month at a time and is aimed at people who may only need the service for a limited time, it costs £5 per month.

Registered passengers can telephone the office on weekdays between (Monday to Friday 8.30am to 4.30pm excluding bank holidays) to book transport. We need at least two working days’ notice to book transport so that we have time to allocate a volunteer driver.
If a passenger needs to cancel their journey, they must tell us as soon as possible, as in some cases, they may still be charged. Cancellations can be made at any time by telephoning the office. You can leave messages at any time.

What can I use the service for?

You can use the service for all sorts of journeys – health appointments, shopping trips, social clubs, visiting friends, activities etc

Can I use the service for hospital appointments?

We are unable to offer journeys to hospital appointments. This is due to a shortage of volunteer drivers, difficulty in parking uncertainty around appointment times etc. We are not funded to support hospital journeys – statutory services offer alternative options.

How often can I use the service?

There are currently no restrictions on how often you can use the service, however, our capacity to respond depends entirely on the volunteers we have on that day and in your area, so we are not always able to fulfil all requests. If you want to do the same journey at the same time every week we can set it up as a regular trip.

Who are the drivers?

Our amazing drivers are men and women from across Rushcliffe and Gedling, who volunteer their time and their vehicle to help people in their community. All drivers undergo a Disclosure and Barring police check. We also request references, provide a driver induction, and complete checks on their licence, vehicle and insurance documents. All our drivers carry photo IDs.

How do I book a journey?

Journeys can be booked by phoning us on 0115 969 9060. We do require a minimum of two working days’ notice. We do not operate on a first come first served basis, we prioritise the requests as fairly as we can.

Will the driver wait for me?

If you are going to be less than 1 hour, the driver will usually be happy to wait for you. If it’s going to be longer than that, the driver may go away elsewhere or back home and return for you at the specified time.

Can I take someone with me?

If you need someone with you for support, you may take someone else as an escort. Escorts travel free and will not be charged the £3 booking fee.

How do you allocate the driver?

We will always try to allocate the journey to the nearest available driver to keep the costs down for our passengers. As you will appreciate, due to the volume of requests and availability of drivers, this is not always possible, but we do our best. If you have a regular journey, while we would try to allocate the same driver each week, sometimes this is not possible. This means that the cost of the journey will vary depending on the driver allocated.

How much will my journey cost?

The driver will calculate the journey cost using a mileage cost of 45p/mile – this is to cover the costs of the volunteer’s mileage and includes the driver’s journey from his/her house or start point. In addition, there is a £3 booking fee for each journey.

How do I pay for the journeys?

Most passengers pay by cash directly to the driver. If paying by cash is difficult for whatever reason, there is an option to pay by monthly invoice for a small additional charge to cover the extra admin costs. Please contact us to discuss.

What if I need to cancel?

Please give us as much notice as possible if you need to cancel the journey so that we can reallocate the driver to help another passenger. We reserve the right to make a charge for journeys cancelled with less than 24 hours’ notice.

What if you don’t have a driver?

We work hard to arrange a volunteer driver for you but cannot guarantee that we can fulfil all the journey requests that we have on a given day. This is due to the high volume of requests versus driver availability. Once we have your request, you can assume you have a driver unless we contact you to let you know differently (this will usually be the day before).

How do I re-register after 12 months?

Your membership is for 12 months. We will contact you when it expires so that you can re-register (currently £35 or £45 for a couple) – we will need to check your mobility requirements and emergency contact details are up to date.

How can I support the service?

We ask for your feedback each year when you re-register, but we love to hear from passengers at any time. We value all feedback which we use to help improve the service. We are a Registered Charity (No 1079880) and welcome donations and other support with our fundraising.

Get in touch

Call our office on 0115 969 9060, email admin@rushcliffecvs.org.uk or fill out our contact form for more information or to sign up for our services. You can also download a registration form here.

Watch the BBC East Midlands Today interview with our Volunteer drivers and Service users about the benefits of volunteering and the Transport service.