Give Us a Lift

WRVS is asking people across Great Britian not to leave older people stranded - Give Them a Lift! 

For most people getting where you need to go every day is as easy as jumping in the car, grabbing a bus or riding a bike. But, according to new research commissioned by older peoples charity WRVS, for a third of people over 65 in Britain, increasing to nearly half of people over 75, it’s not that simple. Without a decent bus service, a car or help with mobility problems, many older people are stuck at home. Thumbing a lift may be the only option for many but it’s not the answer. WRVS wants to make sure every older person in Britain can get where they want, when they want.


Having the ability to go shopping, meet friends and family and do a range of things most of us take for granted is vital for people to feel independent and in control of their life. Nearly three quarters of people over 65 say they’ve had to stop doing things they enjoy as they’ve got older. Nearly half of the people surveyed said one of the three most important improvements to quality of life would be a better range of transport services, ahead of better social services and financial advice.

WRVS has transport services in 100 communities, we’d like more but need volunteers and money to make it happen. We need more than 20 volunteers right now to be able to respond to every older person who phones up for a lift. With more volunteers we could help even more people get out and about and give older people a lift.

Interested in helping older people in your community? Visit giveusalift.org.uk or call our volunteer hotline on 0845 601 4670.

Have some balls Mr Burnham

The Department of Health announced this week that they won't be able to publish the figures that back up their proposals for a National Care Service. It means that we're all going to have to take on trust that the three options for funding the proposals are the only ones feasible, and that they will give us the National Care Service this country needs.

With trust in politics at an all time low - it's a stretch and a real shame that the Government doesn't have the confidence to demonstrate the realities behind their proposals for reforming social care - which on paper look really good. Surely that's what the Big Care Debate they launched in July is all about.

We all know that times are tough, finances tight - but we also know that we need to sort out care and support now if we're going to all live healthier and better lives as we age in the future. We can't do that if we don't know what we're dealing with.

I wish our politicians could take a few more of the right risks. Have some balls Mr Burnham, publish the figures and let's work together on creating a National Care Service we can all be proud of.

See Reforming social care on our website.