VOLUNTEER MINIBUS DRIVER

We Urgently Need To Recruit More Volunteers Drivers, To Drive Our Minibuses For Our Days Out & Daventry Town Community Bus Service Each Friday

• There is no commitment to regular days as we are very flexible.

• The minibuses are automatic and not as daunting to drive as you might think – not everyone needs to be a retired bus driver!

• A good sense of humour and an interest in meeting people are essential.

• Specialist MiDAS training is provided for all volunteers.

On average, our minibus drivers take more than 28,000 PASSENGERS in a year - the equivalent of almost 21,000 HOURS OF COMMUNITY SERVICE

Thank you so much for showing interest in joining our wonderful team of minibuses drivers volunteers Please complete the form below, and we will be in touch shortly to get you started.

Jessica (volunteer mini bus driver) 

“I am a volunteer mini bus driver and I love it. I have been volunteering for DACT since 2009.

I retired from a career with London transport as a bus driver and later a revenue inspector.

I moved location from London to Daventry in 2002 decided I needed to be involved in the community and wanted to be involved in something worthwhile.

I love getting out and about and meeting people plus getting to go to some new and interesting places. I personally benefit from DACT  it gives me lots of happiness  and keeps me fit and active. 

I have met some lovely people and made so many friends its always pleasure to drive to all the different locations. Our day trip brochures are so full of places to go, and we are never short of travellers.

Joining the DACT family is so worthwhile, and you will get so much from volunteering with this amazing charity I will say to anyone thinking of joining us at DACT just do it!  you will not regret it, and you will find its addictive helping other people.

I cannot image my life without  DACT and I know when I am unable to drive and need the help of the amazing volunteers, they will be there for  me just like they are for anyone who needs them.”

Doug (volunteer mini bus driver) 

I am a mini bus driver and I started with DACT in 2016

 My story with DACT was when I was the chauffeur for Daventry District Council and the chairman at the time was in a wheelchair , so I contacted DACT to arrange for training to use one of there buses and learnt how to transport people in a wheelchair.

After 12 months working with the chairman and going to various functions you realise how important it is for people with disabilities to be included with every day events ,so I decided to volunteer once I had retired and have enjoyed it ever since.

On our DACT days out you meet so many different people from all walks of life who use the service for many different reasons from just wanting company, no longer driving or meeting friends or family in the place we are visiting.

From a personal point of view I have visited many places that I would not have thought of and been pleasantly surprised.

We go to so many places ,stately homes, the seaside, garden centres, boat trips, market towns and when doing the mystery tours it so interesting hearing the passengers trying to work out where we are going. On occasion due to detours we can end up on some very small roads and I find it amusing when I have to squeeze through traffic and get an applause from the passengers when i get through.

I also enjoy working with a team of like minded people I can highly recommend becoming a volunteer as it gives so many people a lot of pleasure and the service is a life line for people who otherwise may not get out and about”.

Graham/ Volunteer Car & Bus Driver

“I first discovered DACT in 2005 when I purchased my narrowboat. I met a few other boat owners who used the service to get to doctors and other medical appointments.

DACT became more familiar to me when I purchased my house in Braunston in 2011 and discovered some of my neighbour’s relied upon the volunteer drivers to get them to their medical appointments.

I have been a volunteer for various organisations such as Round Table, Rotary and now Lions and have seen the enormous benefits volunteering gives to the community.

When I planned to retire in mid 2023 I decided I would approach DACT to see if they needed any volunteer drivers. I was invited into the office and discussed the role of the volunteer car drivers and decided this would be an ideal role for me.

Taking people to their appointments gives me great pleasure as I meet so many different people from all walks of life and I feel as though I am doing something meaningful to the community.

I also drive a minibus for DACT and they have trained me through the MIDAS scheme and I am now able to assist with the Daventry Town Community bus service on a Friday as well as taking groups on organised days out. This gives me the pleasure of meeting even more people and I get to go to different places of interest.

Volunteering is a big part of my life and I enjoy every moment of what I do.”

Cath (DACT Minibus Driver)

I’ve been a volunteer minibus driver with DACT since September 2021. When I retired in December 2020, I decided that I wanted to learn new things. So, after I’d passed my amateur radio licence I moved on to do my advanced driving test. My observer (they’re not called instructors) was also a DACT minibus driver and as I was already doing my advanced driving in a transit van he asked if I’d be interested in becoming a DACT minibus driver.

Days out, meeting new people driving a minibus - what’s not to like?

While some jobs are quite mundane such as taking school teams to sports competitions there are also days out for various local groups and, of course, there are the DACT days out.

Drivers can generally choose which trips we do, so I can volunteer for a trip to a gardens or country house or a town like Melton Mowbray or Stamford, often on market day. Sometimes we get a call or a message for a drive at short notice if someone’s plans have changed and they can’t do a drive they’d previously volunteered for. But sometimes that’s me having to cancel a drive I’ve said I’d do because a medical appointment has come through for someone in the family so I’m always happy to help out on these calls, if I can.

I’ve been to some lovely places with DACT that I probably wouldn’t have gone to on my own or wouldn’t have had had such a great time. One trip for a private group was to Burghley House (home of William Cecil, adviser to Elizabeth 1) and the group invited me to join them on the ‘behind the scenes’ tour they’d booked. Another group got me into Chatsworth house and gardens as part of their group. I’ve dined with groups on their Christmas do’s and been invited to the theatre with others. I’ve been to ‘Downton Abbey’, Crufts, Hampton Court Palace, Henley on Thames (in regatta week!) and several Christmas markets.

In fact, one of the best trips (I’ve done it a few times now) is to Worcester Christmas market. All the coaches and minibuses have to drop passengers off and then retreat to a coach park for the day (drivers do get bussed back into the city so we can visit the market too). Picking up our passengers is the best bit, though. We go in convoy behind a police escort. The choreography of the police motorbikes is so smooth as they zip ahead to close roundabouts and junctions for the coach convoy then drop to the back before it’s their turn to take the lead again. One year I was the lead bus immediately behind the police. I felt like the queen with them stopping all the traffic for me (and about 5 other buses too!).

If you’ve got the time and like meeting people and getting out and about why not consider volunteering as a DACT minibus driver? Most destinations are within 2 hours of Daventry so that’s quite a big area of attractions to visit. Steam railways, the seaside, shopping, gardens, stately homes, quaint English towns and markets, Christmas lights and markets – there’s something for everyone.   

My name is Colin and I am a volunteer minibus driver.

I started volunteering just before the Covid pandemic in 2020. I did one trip and was then shut down for about 18 months before starting again. I wanted to help the charity DACT grow and it was an ideal opportunity after I retired, and it also helped to fill the void that retirement can bring.

 I regularly cover for Ian in the Dial-a-Ride service which occurs each Friday for market day in Daventry.  I enjoy meeting the users of the service and hearing the chatter in the background about what everyone has been up to in the previous week. It’s also interesting meeting the very helpful assistants supplied by Cummins.

It’s very beneficial knowing that by volunteering as I do, I am enabling the users to have a little bit of independence in doing their own shopping, meeting other like-minded people and seeing parts of Daventry they wouldn’t normally visit as they travel on their route to the shops.

I regularly cover for Ian who is the normal driver, and I often hear comments like, “Ian doesn’t go this way” and “Ian normally picks Barbara (name changed to protect the innocent) next”. I let it go over my head. Ian and myself have different senses of direction, I fear.

If you have some spare time or are able to make some, I would recommend that you consider volunteering for DACT as it is very rewarding in my opinion and you will gain experiences not found elsewhere.

My name is Pete and I am a volunteer minibus driver for DACT. I began volunteering 18 months ago after I retired from driving a lorry for 45 years.

Although I have plenty of things to do, most of them at home, I wanted to get out more. Having seen a post on Facebook about DACT, I arranged a meeting with them in their office where all the details were explained to me and a minibus training day was arranged. The course was excellent and the following support is comprehensive. I didn’t want to commit to regular times or days, but with DACT I can pick and choose how many days that I want to work.

Having been a lorry driver, it means spending a lot of time on your own, whereas on the bus you meet new and regular passengers each time and many become friends. Very often when walking through town people will remember you and stop for a chat.

One of the areas that DACT cover is clubs and groups. One time I’ll take the Darby and Joan club to the theatre or then the walking netball club to Windsor Castle. Very often the clubs include you in their events. I’ve been to pantomimes, open air concerts, the BBC Gardners World show at the NEC and many more.

The big thing for me at DACT is the flexibility of the hours and days I can commit to. Sometimes you have a weeks’ notice or then you must react at short notice to cover illnesses, but, never once, have I been pressured to do anything against my will.

As a volunteer I feel part of a very friendly team, and it has definitely broadened my horizons and brought some wonderful people into my life. If you’re thinking of volunteering, then give it a go. It’s not a commitment for ever. If it’s not for you, there may be other things to try, but you will certainly make friends on your journey.

It’s not just about giving something to the community, it’s also getting something back from the community too, and I am amazed how much it means to me.