A Kinross-shire volunteer group is celebrating 40 years as the community’s driving force.
The Kinross-shire Volunteer Group and Rural Outreach Scheme (KVG&ROS) recently won Age Scotland’s national award for Services to Older People.
The title acknowledges the work the group has done over the last four decades to provide essential transport to people who might otherwise be stuck in their homes.
Its squad of 33 drivers pick up residents across Kinross-shire – including Glenfarg and all the smaller towns and villages – and take them to essential appointments and social outings.
That might be hospital visits, or dentist appointments.
Often it’s something as simple as a trip to the hairdresser, or the supermarket.
Last year, the drivers completed 2,900 volunteer hours and clocked up 5,000 miles.
And for the 300 or so clients on the charity’s books, it’s a lifeline they could not do without.
Kinross regulars would be lost without their transport group
Reg Gray, 91, has been going back and forward from his home in Kinross to his dentist in Dollar recently.
“It’s a very good service,” he said.
“The drivers are all friendly and you get a good chat on the way.”
Anne Henderson, 77, used it recently to attend a funeral. Her friend Jenny Pennell, 85, relies on it to get to the hairdresser.
Another pal Pat Saulnier, 89, from Kinross, uses it to get to her hospital appointments at Perth Royal Infirmary.
“It’s a wonderful service,” she said.
“I don’t know what we’d do without it.”
The human aspect is as important as the transport itself, says Iona Philp, the Kinross Volunteer Group and Rural Outreach Scheme’s administrator and one of only two paid employees.
“It can be stressful going to these appointments,” she says.
“So having someone to drive you, and chat and take your mind off things makes a big difference.
“People are always so grateful.”
Social runs help tackle isolation
Pauline Watson, the group’s secretary, started volunteering after her late mum used the service.
Now she helps with things like fundraising and spreading the word.
Drivers are paid 45p a mile and passengers pay a small fee. Many of the clients are elderly, but the service is there for anyone who needs it.
Drivers can pick people up anywhere in Kinross-shire, and take them anywhere they need to go, including hospital appointments in Dundee, Glasgow and Edinburgh.
But sometimes it’s the smallest runs that make the biggest difference.
The group was initially set up to tackle social isolation and give people independence, and that’s every bit as vital as it was in the 1980s, says Pauline
“Social runs are a big part of it,” she said.
“That might be visiting a friend in a nursing home, or going to the hairdresser. We’ve got one lady doing a 10-week IT course at the moment.
“We’re doing about 170 runs a week. These are people who simply wouldn’t be able to do these things if we weren’t here.”
Drivers get as much back
Retired accountant Jim Marshall is one of the volunteer drivers.
He insists they get as much out of the service as their clients.
“There’s the satisfaction of being able to give something back to the community,” he said.
“But the people we drive are all really good company. Most of them have had long and interesting lives and they’ve always got stories to tell.”
More recently, the group has also started working with Perth and Kinross Council’s social work department and the Kinross foodbank Broke Not Broken.
It can also provide financial support to people who might not otherwise be able to afford it.
Kinross-shire Volunteer Group and Rural Outreach Scheme chairman David Aird says the team are proud of their award from Age Scotland, and determined to go on serving their community.
“When you think what it would cost the NHS in missed appointments if our clients couldn’t get there, there’s a much wider value to society,” he said.
To find out more, or to book a driver, call 01577 840196.
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