One of the challenges many people face, particularly those living in remote rural areas, is transport to and from their COVID-19 vaccination appointment.
For local people without transport, Halesworth Volunteer Centre (HVC) has been the coordinating hub for shopping and prescription deliveries to families, older people, and the vulnerable, with a team of friendly and well-organised volunteers offering their services through all three lockdowns. Their latest initiative supports Halesworth Area Community Transport to take vulnerable older people with no vehicle to their vaccination appointments.
Following an appeal to local businesses, Spectra answered the call for help and donated funds to take nearly 70 people to Sole Bay Health Centre for their all-important vaccination appointment.
Emma Healey, the Halesworth Volunteer Centre Manager, said, “We’re so pleased to have the funding from Spectra. It’s fantastic to have support from a local business, and we are really grateful to them for helping us to support Halesworth Area Community Transport.”
Additionally, Spectra were also able to donate funds to Bungay Area Community Transport (BACT).
BACT is a mostly volunteer-based organisation that provides transport facilities around the Suffolk market towns of Beccles and Bungay and the South Norfolk area, stretching from Harleston and Hempnall, to Brooke, Loddon and Aldeby.
Operated on a non-profit basis to cover costs, BACT has also provided essential transport for those needing to get to their vaccination appointments.
In an average year, they have transported around 40,000 passengers on journeys covering 400,000 miles, with several services, including cars, wheelchair accessible vehicles, minibus and door-to-door dial-a-ride. All of their services are open to both young and old and able-bodied and the infirm.
Debbie Blowers, Manager at BACT, commented, “We cannot thank Spectra enough. It is essentially donations like theirs that help us keep community transport moving safely, getting as many people as possible to their vaccination appointments”.
Debbie added, “We will need to look at replacing some of our vehicles in the near future, as they are getting older. Throughout the pandemic, they have travelled many miles to and from our hospitals. Donations such as Spectra’s will also be used to replace our vehicles”.
Joe Maynard, Managing Director at Spectra, said, “Local services are the lifeblood of our community. We understand the important role they play because they have proved invaluable to many family members and friends of staff at Spectra. As a local company, we are truly honoured to help in any way we can and applaud the fantastic work both Halesworth Volunteer Centre (HVC), and Bungay Area Community Transport (BACT) do”.
Joe went on to add, “Back in April last year; we were grateful to have been able to support local care homes under threat from COVID-19 with donations of hundreds of bottles of anti-bacterial sanitisers. We subsequently extended the offer to other essential front-line services such as the fire service and schools. This latest offering of support is our way of proudly giving something back in times of need”.
