Become a lunch club minibus driver in Crosby
As a lunch club group minibus driver, you’ll take turns with the other lunch club minibus drivers collecting older guests from their homes, accompanying them to the weekly Wednesday lunch club and dropping them home again afterwards.
Lunch clubs take place on a Wednesday lunchtime and include older guests, lunch club volunteers, minibus drivers and the lunch club group coordinator.
Crosby lunch club provides a lifeline of friendship for socially isolated and lonely older people. The warm, regular, and friendly companionship provides a vital link with the outside world from which they’ve become isolated.
To become a lunch club minibus driver, you’ll need to:
- Have a 30-minute induction call with a member of the Re-engage team
- Submit a DBS check (England and Wales) or a PVG check (Scotland)
- Provide a reference
- Complete online volunteer training modules
Tasks include:
- Conducting safety checks on the minibus and completing records prior to and after each journey.
- Keeping in regular contact with the lunch group coordinator so they know when you’re available to drive, and so you know which older guests you’re driving.
- Planning your route so you can safely collect the older guests and drive them to and from the lunch club in good time.
- Collecting the older guests, driving them to the lunch club and dropping them home again afterwards.
- Safely operating the tail lift, ensuring that the older guests are safe and secure within the minibus.
- Staying at the lunch club to socialise with the older guests and other volunteers.
- Following the guidance in the online volunteer training so that the lunch clubs are safe, enjoyable, appropriate and in line with our charitable aims.
- Reporting any concerns to the lunch club group coordinator.
- Keeping your knowledge and training up to date by reading our monthly volunteer newsletter – Re-engage Matters.
Could you be our next lunch club minibus driver?
This is a flexible voluntary role that can easily be fitted in around your own lifestyle and availability.
Lunch clubs are normally once a week on a Wednesday in the same community venue and usually last for two hours.
Lunch club minibus drivers will need:
- A full driving license with a D1 classification
- To be willing to obtain a MIDAS qualification and a manual handling certification or have prior experience driving a minibus
- To disclose any existing motoring offenses including speeding and driving without due care and attention to Re-engage
- To report any new motoring offenses including speeding and driving without due care and attention to Re-engage
- To ensure that all passengers are wearing seat belts and that their head rests are appropriately adjusted
- To disclose if they are over the age of 70 so that Re-engage can notify the insurance company
Please note that you must be at least 18 years old to become a Re-engage volunteer.
To keep our services free for older people, we aren’t able to pay expenses for this role.
This is a fun, flexible and rewarding role which will enable you to connect with, and make a real and lasting difference to, the lives of older people who are experiencing social isolation or loneliness.
As a valued Re-engage volunteer you’ll receive training, support and regular updates and communication from the Re-engage team.
We’re looking for minibus drivers who have:
- Safe driving skills
- Good planning and organisational skills
- A friendly nature
- Good listening skills
- Good conversation skills
- Patience and understanding
- A passion for improving the lives of lonely and isolated older people
- Basic computer skills (our inductions, checks and training are all online and our charity is paperless)
If this sounds like you, then we’d love to hear from you. You can apply to be a lunch club minibus driver by completing our online application form.