About us
About Us
Who we are
Transport for Sick Children is charity with an incredible team of volunteers who give up their time and use their own cars to take accompanied children to hospital and clinic appointments. We were founded in 1977 by a retired paediatric nurse who was asked to help a family whose child was failing to thrive. The nurse provided transport to a medical appointment and successfully prevented the child from being taken in to care. As their need for help diminished, a request for help from another family arose and so the scheme was born. Originating in South Manchester, Transport for Sick Children now covers the whole of Greater Manchester.
What we do
The charity relies on a dedicated team of volunteer car owner drivers to provide the service. These volunteer drivers transport accompanied children to appointments and then either wait or return later to take the family home. The service is free, though donations are welcome.
Volunteers are reimbursed their fuel costs but give freely of their spare time. Some drivers carry out one journey a month, others are on the road for us most days of the week. Volunteer drivers are interviewed, have an accompanied drive and have a DBS check to ensure they are suitable.
We have a small team of dedicated transport organisers who match the child and family with a driver and make sure the scheme runs smoothly. They have good relationships with volunteer drivers and referrers.
Our mission statement
Transport for Sick Children Ltd was established to relieve the health needs of children by the provision of voluntary transport to and from hospitals, clinics and outpatient departments for children and their carers who live in and around Manchester. The total health needs of the child are our first consideration. The service is available to any children and their carers who are referred by a health, education or social services professional.
We aim to fulfil this by:
- Providing a service which is responsive, easily accessible, prompt & friendly
- Providing a service which meets as far as possible the needs of the individual child and their carers
- Transporting children and their carers safely
- Using individual vehicles owned by volunteers drivers
- Valuing our volunteers and staff ensuring that their contribution is recognised & influences the development of the organisation
- Working in partnership with other statutory, voluntary & independent agencies
- Evaluating our effectiveness & efficiency to ensure that we make maximum use of our resources both people and money in order to achieve these guiding principles.
Why we are unique
- We are able to help children and their carers when other transport options may be unavailable. We can help with early morning, evening and weekend appointments.
- With prior notice, we can often accommodate other family members and siblings
- Unlike some other schemes, we do not operate within geographical boundaries. We can take children wherever is needed, sometimes to Liverpool, Birmingham and Newcastle.
- We only receive referrals from Health Sector personnel so they can assess need and as a result we only provide transport for those who really need it.
- While we welcome donations, the service is provided free of charge
Who support us
We are funded by the NHS Integrated Commissioning Board :
- Wigan
- Bolton
- Bury
- Heywood, Middleton & Rochdale
- Oldham
- Tameside & Glossop
- Manchester
- Salford
- Trafford
- Stockport
We also receive funding from local businesses, small community groups and generous individuals.
