- And the Welsh Assembly gives green light to three years’ funding -

A ‘lifeline’ for the carers of sick and elderly people in South Wales has been nominated in the prestigious Charity Awards 2004.

The Cars for Carers door-to-door transport scheme is run by CSV’s Retired and Senior Volunteers Programme (RSVP) (2) in Pembrokeshire, a rural county where the existing public transport system is limited and where unpaid carers make up almost 15% of the county’s ageing population. Senior volunteers, many of them retired, assist carers on essential journeys such as driving them to the shops, to the doctor’s surgery, and even to visit a friend which helps to combat the isolation of carers.

Rachel Evans, Project Development Worker for the scheme, and Barbara Locke, RSVP Manager for Wales will attend the glittering Charity Awards gala presentation on Thursday 17th June at Battersea Park Arena in London when the winners will be announced.

The Charity Awards panel short listed Cars for Carers for an award because it is cheap, flexible and reliable and it benefits carers and volunteers alike. Carol Mason, 57, lives in Llanteg, with the nearest town 17 miles away.  She is a full time carer to her 35 year old brain damaged son, who suffers from daily seizures. Carol cannot drive and lives on £43 a week so she cannot afford to take driving lessons. Cars for Carers helps Carol to visit her sick mother in a care home, as well as allowing her to go shopping for her family and to visit friends.

Carol said: “The scheme is a lifeline for me. I have been a carer for over 30 years so I know how it feels to be isolated through caring. Carers are often in the background which can be just as debilitating as having a disability. We become invisible and life doesn’t move on in a normal way. Cars for Carers has helped me to travel around and attend carer’s group meetings which I wouldn’t have been able to do without being able to drive. The drivers are friendly and punctual and are very sensitive to my needs as a carer.”

Sally Davies, Carers Development Worker, Pembrokeshire Association of Voluntary Services said: "Since Cars for Carers came into being, there is no longer a problem with transport for Carers and in such a rural area as Pembrokeshire it is amazing for any group to be able to say that." Over 80 journeys are undertaken by almost 30 volunteers each month, currently helping 130 carers in the county.

The scheme also benefits the volunteers themselves by tapping in to the wealth of experience and talent amongst older people in Pembrokeshire, preventing a loss of skills both to the individual and to the community at large. Volunteer drivers are offered informal IT training by skilled volunteers to encourage them to make use of computers and well as making new friends at the same time.

Eddie Dorras, who has lived in Pembrokeshire for 30 years, is a volunteer driver with the scheme. Eddie spent 50 years in the catering trade as a chef, in the Merchant Navy and abroad before retiring. He said: "I felt I needed to do some form of voluntary work and Cars for Carers not only fitted in with my lifestyle but brought me into contact with the public, which I had missed – retirement had come as a shock to the system. Cars for Carers seemed appropriate as one of our sons, Mark, who is 41, is severely mentally disabled with accompanying mobility problems. In driving for Cars for Carers, I feel that as well as helping with an excellent service, I am in some small way putting something back into the community where we have been very happy as a family."

The Welsh Assembly’s funding of Cars for Carers to the tune of £120,000 over the next three years is a measure of the scheme’s success. The scheme is going from strength to strength, and ongoing presentations to local groups promote it both to new potential drivers, to carers and to potential community partners. RSVP has already built a good working relationship with many carers groups in the area, including Pembrokeshire Carers Outreach.

Over 100 RSVP volunteers are involved in a range of other projects in South Wales. An army of volunteers knit toys and ‘trauma teddies’ made from recycled local wool, which are transported on aid convoys to children in former eastern bloc countries. Dozens of volunteers also help school children with their reading in primary schools across the county, as part of RSVP’s Education Programme.

Further press information: Martin Walford, CSV Press officer, 020 7643 1338, Email: mwalford@csv.org.uk or Jason Tanner 020 7643 1428, mobile 07941 433 598. Latest press releases: www.csv.org.uk/press

Notes for Editors:

1) CSV (Community Service Volunteers) is the UK’s leading volunteer organisation and creates opportunities for people to play an active part in the life of their community through volunteering, training and community action. Each year 129,000 people give 3.8 million hours of their time as volunteers through CSV. See www.csv.org.uk

2) Each year 8,000 older people volunteer through CSV’s Retired and Senior Volunteer Programme (RSVP), giving 1.4 million volunteer hours and using their skills and experience to make a positive contribution to their community.