ABOUT SERVICES PROJECTS NEWS JOBS CONTACT HOW WE ARE STAYING COVID-19 SECURE Types of services Home > Services > Types of services > Community Transport for Public Bodies Community Transport for Public Bodies ECT Charity works with local authorities to provide services such as special educational needs transport, trips to and from day centres, local bus services, health and other door-to-door transport for older, disabled and isolated individuals. These community transport services provide a variety of solutions fulfilling statutory requirements and other social needs. ECT Charity enters into contracts if in doing so it: provides a public benefit; falls within the scope of ECT Charity's charitable objectives; and provides a clear financial contribution to the charity's core costs and stable income for a known period, enabling the charity to commit resources to its charitable services. Obligation on commissioners to consider social value The idea that businesses can create social and environmental returns alongside financial returns has been gathering increasing interest. This shift in thinking is exemplified by the Public Services (Social Value) Act 2012 which came into force in January 2013 and obliges all public bodies in England and Wales to consider how the services they commission and procure might improve the economic, social and environmental well-being of the area. Not only do we achieve social impact through our services for individuals and groups, but the vehicles remain in the community as an asset. When a Local Authority procures its home-to-school transport services (including for children with special educational needs), we ensure that we maximise the use of our vehicles by using them during the day for our individual door-to-door transport services (such as transporting socially isolated old people to and from luncheon clubs and healthcare appointments) and during the weekends for use by voluntary and community sector groups. Cuts to commissioners’ budgets Whilst the financial downturn catalysed the move towards social value commissioning, it has also meant that commissioners have suffered significant cuts to their budgets. As such, commissioners are under pressure to procure the required services but with fewer resources. Whereas some transport operators may choose to compromise on quality to lower their prices in order to secure a contract, we are firmly dedicated to maintaining our high quality and safety standards as a priority. We never compromise on that. Instead of taking a simplistic and reactionist approach to the changing climate, we have taken a holistic view and aim to work with commissioners to facilitate “integrated care” in the communities in which we serve. An integrated healthcare system is one which puts the focus back on the patient with the aim to minimise fragmentation in patient services and instead provide efficient, coordinated and continuous care. ECT Charity and community transport play a crucial role in facilitating this transition. Not only do we contribute to the NHS’s drive for an increasingly integrated approach to healthcare, we also contribute to deferring and reducing the need for healthcare of older people. For instance, our door-to-door transport service can help an 80 year old lady maintain her independence by going to the shops and visiting friends. If it were not for our service, she would remain socially isolated at home which would contribute to the deterioration of her psychological and physical wellbeing. It is well known that socially isolated older people make far more calls to their GPs than those who lead a more socially active lifestyle. Recent News You could be ECT’s next trustee! Staying Safe New CEO John Chesters says ECT is “in a terrific place” to build on “exceptional work in our communities” My passion for what we do, my pride in my team – and my true belief in the difference transport makes for local communities OUR PARTNERS ABOUT US | SERVICES | OUR PARTNERS | LEGAL | PRIVACY | CONTACT US © ECT Charity