ECT Charity’s focus is on helping isolated people get out and about. CEO Anna Whitty explains how.
On the eve of our 40th anniversary, we have been considering how best to express what we do. After reviewing our vision, mission and values, we wanted to create a new phrase for the organisation which we as staff and volunteers all relate to, and one which succinctly captures why we exist and what we want to achieve.
Going forward, you’ll often see “making journeys possible” below our logo. This new strapline is a true reflection of what we as an organisation are all about.
“Making journeys possible” embodies the social value that we create every day. We do this by enabling those people who struggle to access mainstream transport to lead active and independent lives.
We focus on helping those people who fall between the gaps of statutory transport provision, those who are isolated in rural areas, and those who are lonely because they struggle to leave their homes using conventional transport. Community transport is much more than taking passengers from A to B; we take them to new places, help them stay healthy and make new friends.
I’m sure that this new strapline will resonate very well with passengers, whether they live in urban Ealing or rural Dorset. They often tell us that community transport is a “godsend” and a “lifeline” and that it helps them lead lives that they thought might not be otherwise possible due to mobility or other difficulties, or because local transport services have been cut from their area.
Recent conversations with passengers on our Cheshire summer day trips illustrate how we help people enjoy their lives by taking them on days out to the seaside, to garden centres and cities – places some of them thought they might never have the opportunity to see again.
Our upcoming “Journey Makers” series is a collection of stories which will shine a light on the people who are “making journeys possible” for passengers every day. We will hear from drivers, volunteers, carers, staff and organisers, all of whom provide that extra care which sets community transport apart.
We hope you enjoy it!
Anna Whitty, CEO, ECT Charity
