DIAL-A-COMMUNITY
BUS NEWS
2008
Press
Release;
Saturday 28th June 2008
Annual
Birthday Party attended by Stewart Stevenson Minister of Transport
Buchan
Dial-a-Community Bus held their annual birthday party / coffee
morning at Mintlaw Village Hall on Saturday and used the opportunity
to launch the latest addition to their fleet with the help of
Stewart Stevenson Minister of Transport.
Dial-a-Community Bus (DACB) took delivery of their new Volkswagen
minibus in May and the organisation is very proud of the addition
to the fleet.
Manager Rachel Milne said today;
“It’s a beautiful vehicle and we’re extremely
pleased with it. We put a great deal of thought into the design
of this bus and thought long and hard about the clients who
will be using it and the level of space and comfort they deserve
when travelling with us. It was a lot of hard work but it’s
really paid off and we hope that the clients are as happy with
it as we are.”
She paid tribute to the fundraisers who raised half the costs
of the new bus;
“We have a small team of volunteers who work tirelessly
to raise the £6,000 per year we need, in order to maintain
our current levels of service and then on top of that they try
and raise extra funds towards new vehicles like this one:
They are an incredibly dedicated group and we owe this new bus
to them and to everyone who has supported our efforts over the
last few years.”
The charity’s annual Birthday party/coffee morning brought
in over £1030 for their funds. Stewart Stevenson Minister
of Transport cut the birthday cake and paid tribute to the hard
work and continuing success of the organisation.
DACB is a community owned transport charity which provides transport
services for people who cannot access conventional transport.
The organisation originally started as a small project in Central
Buchan using off duty police officers to drive a borrowed bus.
Over the last 8 years they have expanded their services all
over the Buchan area and now offer a wide range of services
for a variety of different people, using minibuses and cars
driven by both staff and volunteers.
Rachel is extremely proud of the way the charity has grown;
“In the last year we have been named Scotland’s
Charity of the Year 2007, we were invited to be at the opening
of Parliament and at a reception with the Queen and we have
been acknowledged as one of the top Community Transport projects
in Britain. What more can a small charity in the north east
of Scotland ask?
But more than that; we have provided services for our clients
that are vitally needed and deeply appreciated by them. Without
us, many of our clients would not be able to have the independence
that everyone has the right to enjoy.”
In 2007 DACB opened a social enterprise; DAB Plus c.i.c which
operates commercially to create a surplus which the group hope
will, in the long term, reduce the charity’s dependence
on grant funding.
Rachel
explained;
“Over
the last eight years DACB has grown and changed to fit with
the changes in the sector. However we know that we have an enormous
responsibility to our clients and to keeping our services going.
Our social enterprise arm will allow us to work in areas that
currently the charity cannot and to use the expertise that our
years of working in the transport and training field have garnered
us. I am very much looking forward to seeing what the future
will bring.”
For
futher information please contact Buchan Dial-a-Community Bus
on 01771 619191.
