{"id":2279,"date":"2025-04-07T12:00:00","date_gmt":"2025-04-07T11:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/sunshine-and-strolls-at-hergest-croft-gardens-2\/"},"modified":"2025-08-12T12:15:31","modified_gmt":"2025-08-12T11:15:31","slug":"rise-of-the-community-bus-one-year-of-service-and-its-going-strong","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/rise-of-the-community-bus-one-year-of-service-and-its-going-strong\/","title":{"rendered":"VIDEO: Rise of the Community Bus \u2014 One Year of Service and it&#8217;s Going Strong!"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>How Funding &amp; Ambition Transformed Lives<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n<!--more-->\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">The Grant That Got Us Moving<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>In August 2023, Llanwrtyd Wells Community Transport (LWCT) was awarded <strong>\u00a337,639<\/strong> from the <strong>Social Value Forum <strong>(SVF)<\/strong><\/strong> <strong>Development Fund for 2023\u20132025<\/strong>. This was a breakthrough moment for us, after an earlier unsuccessful bid. This funding enabled us to launch our <strong><a href=\"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/community-transport\/#bus\" data-type=\"link\" data-id=\"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/en\/community-transport\/#bus\">Bws Cymunedol<\/a><\/strong>, a twice-weekly door-to-door service that\u2019s now a vital part of life for many in our service area.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What Is the Social Value Forum?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>It&#8217;s a regional initiative designed to support not-for-profit organisations in delivering preventative care and wellbeing services. Coordinated by the <strong>Powys Regional Partnership Board<\/strong>, <strong>Powys Social Value Forum<\/strong>, and <strong>PAVO<\/strong> (Powys Association of Voluntary Organisations), the fund prioritises projects that:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Address the <strong>cost of living<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Improve <strong>transport to wellbeing<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Support <strong>independent living<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Reduce <strong>loneliness and isolation<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How We Made Our Application<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>Our General Manager, <strong><a href=\"\/cy\/laura-burns\/\">Laura Burns<\/a><\/strong>, led the bid, submitting the final paperwork on 21 July 2023, before she got a well deserved holiday. The process included a tough questionnaire and the submission of essential governance documents, with all directors playing a role in ensuring our company policies were fit for purpose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What the Funding Delivered<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The Community Bus <a href=\"\/cy\/our-new-community-bus-service-running-from-4th-december-2023\/\">launched in December 2023<\/a> and runs every <strong>Tuesday and Thursday<\/strong>, serving Llanwrtyd Wells, Llangammarch Wells, Beulah, Builth Wells, and Llandrindod Wells and other rural communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Key features of the service include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Affordable fares <\/strong>\u2014 \u00a32 contribution per return journey <\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Flexible routing <\/strong>\u2014 based on passenger needs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Bus Buddy <\/strong>\u2014 for extra support<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Real Impact<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>By March 2025, the service had:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Carried <strong>970 passengers<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Logged <strong>209 volunteer hours<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Registered <strong>35 regular users<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>Feedback has been enormously positive:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>\u201cNo more groundhog day\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cI can&#8217;t wait for the bus to pull up on a Tuesday and Thursday\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFantastic door-to-door service\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThey are so helpful\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe bus has made me more independent\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt has brought me new friends and given me something to look forward to\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Watch The Journey<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p><strong>Laura<\/strong>, along with Driver <strong>Lynne<\/strong> and Bus Buddy <strong>Janine,<\/strong> and some regular passengers, have prepared a video presentation showcasing the service\u2019s impact.  You can watch it here:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-vimeo wp-block-embed-vimeo wp-embed-aspect-1-1 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe title=\"Shopping bus\" src=\"https:\/\/player.vimeo.com\/video\/1104970026?dnt=1&amp;app_id=122963\" width=\"900\" height=\"900\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"autoplay; fullscreen; picture-in-picture; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\"><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>The success of our funding application brought about a community bus revolution!<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>The grant didn&#8217;t just launch a new service, an amazing sense of community spirit was developed. What began with much planning and a compelling vision has evolved into a reliable, well-loved twice-weekly service that promotes independence, eases isolation, and brings community members together.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>As we continue to measure the impact of the Community Bus, one thing is clear: when funding meets local ambition, real change happens. We\u2019re proud to be part of that change, and grateful to every passenger, and staff member, who\u2019s helped make it possible.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Why It Matters<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p>This project contributes directly to the <strong>Powys Health and Care Strategy<\/strong>, helping residents:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li>Access fresh food and local shops<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Break cycles of isolation<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Connect with others<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Live independently for longer<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">What happens when the funding ends?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Looking ahead, we applied to <strong>The National Lottery Community Fund <\/strong>to help secure the future of the Community Bus with a grant of \u00a3100,000 to enable us to purchase a dedicated mini-bus of our own. This will also contribute to the running costs for a further 12 months. Continued funding should allow us to expand the service, reach more residents, and build on the success we&#8217;ve already seen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Updates on our funding journey, and development of the service, will be shared right here on this website.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>To join the journey, call <strong>01982 552727<\/strong> neu <a href=\"\/cy\/contact\/\">submit your request on-line<\/a>. Whether you want to shop, socialise, or simply enjoy some time out of the house, our Community Bus is here for you.<\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How Funding &amp; Ambition Transformed Lives<\/p>","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2294,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[12,9,6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2279","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-projects-news","category-community-transport-news","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2279","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2279"}],"version-history":[{"count":16,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2279\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2303,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2279\/revisions\/2303"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2294"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2279"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2279"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lwct.org.uk\/cy\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2279"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}