Connecting Communities: Community Transport Service

To pioneer an approach to improve wellbeing, reducing isolation amongst older people utilising the Stevenage Community Transport service

ProjectPublishedPolicy Prototypes

Lead Member Stevenage Borough Council
Year 2021
Status Prototype
Report

Bid

Principles met

Co-production

We will develop systems that enable citizens to be equal partners in designing and commissioning public services and in determining the use of public resources.
Enterprise and social economy

We will promote community-based approaches to economic development that focus on supporting the creation of jobs, social enterprises and other businesses and providing an environment for co-operative and mutual enterprises to thrive.
Social partnership

We will strengthen the co-operative partnership between citizens, communities, enterprises and Councils, based on a shared sense of responsibility for wellbeing and mutual benefit.

About the project

SBC has run a community transport scheme for over 30 years, focused on providing transport solutions for older people and those with disabilities. Throughout the service, numerous examples of older people’s wellbeing improving as a consequence of the relationships and connections to services that are made, have been seen. Through a policy prototype we would like to formalise this, to train and develop the role of Community Transport Drivers to become Community Connectors, to achieve older people increasing their social networks, early intervention reducing the need for crisis intervention, statutory services change their commissioning processes to recognise the role of “relationships” to improve wellbeing for older people.