Volunteer Centre Glossop

Car Scheme Service
Information for Passengers

A team of volunteer drivers help people with disabilities, older people, people with learning disabilities and people with mental health problems to attend medical and similar appointments. Generally the driver stays with the passenger and brings them home again if required. A charge is made to the passenger to cover the cost of the volunteer's petrol.

If you'd like more details, contact Tina or Maggs on 01457 890904.

Who can use the volunteer car scheme?

Car Scheme passengers have to meet certain criteria to be able to use the service. The Scheme is only available to anyone who, due to illness, age or disability, are unable to use public transport such as buses and trains to get about and would struggle to use taxis, or if you have a mental health condition that means you would be greatly distressed at travelling by public transport. Also, the scheme is open to anyone going to a hospital appointment for a procedure that will leave them unable to travel home alone. Regretfully, the scheme is not available on financial grounds.

How much will the scheme cost?

The Car Scheme Drivers are volunteers and do not receive payment. They are only reimbursed by the passenger for the cost of the petrol they have used on the journey. The journey costs are fixed, based on 40p per mile, (an example being a journey to Ashton under Lyne would cost £8.80) and you will be informed of the price prior to the journey. All passengers pay the driver at the end of the journey. The scheme does not allow for the drivers to accept tips, therefore any additional money given by passengers is taken as a donation to the scheme.

Please note: Our drivers are Volunteers, giving their time for free. Please do not refer to them as taxi drivers or to their cars as cabs, as this undermines the voluntary work they do. Thank you.

Bookings and availability

We prefer people to book a week in advance of their appointment, and the absolute limit is three days notice. We do understand that this is sometimes not possible, so we can accept bookings that are very last minute. However, we can never guarantee a driver for these jobs. The drivers are volunteers, transport depends on their availability, and unfortunately sometimes there may be no car available for a job, and we apologise for this.

Limits to the scheme & further information

As our drivers are volunteers and use their own cars, we regret that they are unable to transport anyone with incontinence, children under 12 (unless under exceptional circumstances), anyone between 12 and 18 unless accompanied by an adult, or anyone with severe dementia or who is very confused. For these people an ambulance place is available - please contact your GP.

Please do not smoke in the drivers cars. All drivers have a ID badge which they should wear on jobs. If you are unsure about any driver who comes to your house, please call this office. If you require a wheelchair for a job, we can lend you one for your appointment. Please ask the office for information. Friends or relatives are welcome to accompany you on your journey, please state this when booking your transport.

If you need to cancel your transport, please telephone 890904 as soon as you can.

Registration and booking

You can be referred to the car scheme by your doctor, nurse, health clinic, support worker, social worker, or you can refer yourself. Simply call 890904 and ask to be referred to the scheme. We will take a few details, including your date of birth and health support needs, so we can be sure that you are able to use the scheme. Once you are registered just ring up and book your car - give the destination, appointment time and date, and if you are going to hospital, please inform us of the department you are visiting. Please give at least 3 days notice, if possible, when booking your job, to avoid disappointment.

Where Can Passengers Go?
Car Scheme currently undertakes two categories of journey

Category 1: Journeys to medical related appointments: hospital appointments, doctor appointments, opticians, dentists, private doctors / clinics, physio and chiropodists, visiting people in nursing homes and hospital.

In the majority of cases, the driver will wait with you while you attend your appointment, and bring you home when you are ready to leave. This is unless you are being admitted, or are in for a procedure that will take a few hours. If you have a hospital appointment to be admitted for surgery or a procedure, we can arrange a driver to drop you off at your hospital appointment and pick you up again to transport you home later on in the day, or on another day, whenever you are ready to come out. Unfortunately, because a driver is making two journeys, the cost of the journey will double, for example; if you were being admitted to Tameside on a Monday and were returning on the Wednesday, the same driver (or possibly a different driver) would drop you off on a Monday, return home and then you would be picked up on the Wednesday, and the total cost would be £17.60. The same applies if you are going to stay with a relative.

Category 2: Journeys that are non medical:

The scheme can provide transport to a variety of non medical related places that contribute to the wellbeing of clients. Regretfully, we cannot offer any shopping trips. We can help with taking pets to the vet, providing transport to airports and train stations if you are going on holiday, visits to see friends and relatives, transport to funerals, trips to the hairdressers. The scheme itself does not organise or run holidays, merely provides a driver. The same eligibility rules apply as with the hospital appointments; the scheme must not be used over public transport if you are able to use that. Charges for these destinations are the same as with medical jobs.

Car Scheme Charges

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Please click above to download the charges associated with this service