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Door-to-door bus service a lifeline, charity says

BBC Image of COMMBUS vehicle, with the door slider half-open, the van is adorned with writing including the link to its website and with phone numbersBBC
The bus service covers a number of areas in Blaby, including Enderby, Glen Parva, and Narborough

A transport service that takes residents in rural parts of Leicestershire on day trips and to the shops is approaching 30 years of operation.

For many people living in the Blaby district, getting to the shops can be difficult without a car.

But the COMMBUS project - which sees people pay fares subsidised by Leicestershire County Council - takes people door to door, five days a week, in its three buses.

In January, COMMBUS will have been running for three decades, and the volunteer-run service continues to provide respite and fun with trips to the likes of Market Harborough and Stratford-upon-Avon in Warwickshire.

A grey-haired lady wearing glasses smiles at the camera inside a kitchen. She is wearing a stripy top.
Paula Wollaston has been using the service since 2020

For Paula Wollaston, from Countesthorpe in Leicestershire, she has been using the service since her late husband had a stroke and was not able to drive any more.

The 80-year-old said: "I enjoy the shopping and meeting everyone, it's excellent. It's good to get up to Fosse Park. It's a big help with the shopping.

"It's really important, I love the service and I try to use it every week."

A man in a dark grey suite, with a shop display in the background, looking directly at the camera.
Andy Frith is a manager at the Marks & Spencer in Fosse Park, one of the drop-off sites

One of the locations on the drop-off list is Marks & Spencer at Fosse Park.

Andy Frith is the store manager there, and said: "I think COMMBUS is fantastic, it makes our store more accessible for people.

"It means we can create weekly relationships with those customers, and our staff really get to know them."

A man with greying hair, wearing glasses, and a T-shirt underneath a brown zip-up coat. He is looking directly into the camera.
Kim Richardson, chairperson of the charity, said it was short of drivers

The charity's chairperson, Kim Richardson, who has been a volunteer for seven years, added: "I think it gives the people we transport a great deal more independence, it means they can get out. It's a real lifeline for those people.

"We do pick up people who wouldn't otherwise get out of the house if it wasn't for COMMBUS."

The charity, however, is looking for more volunteers, so it can continue to offer its services to the community.

Mr Richardson, 71, said: "You can never have enough volunteers. Right now, we are particularly short of drivers, so we would love it if more people stepped forward as a driver for us.

"We do train them to a national standard and then we take them from there."

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