Bank Driver - Community Transport

Location: Walton-on-Thames, Surrey (with regular travel across Surrey-based services)

Hours: Flexible bank working - Monday to Friday

Salary: £12.60 per hour

Do you want to make a difference to someone’s life? Do you think you could help people to reach their full potential? At Surrey Choices, we support people with learning disabilities and autism to be active members of their local communities through inspiring and challenging them to learn, enjoy and achieve their goals. Our mission is to deliver innovative, sustainable services that enable choice and positive outcomes for the people we support. These services are provided by skilled, engaged and inspired colleagues.

As the Community Transport Driver, you will provide transport services to the people we support primarily at the start and end of the day, ensuring they are safely picked up and dropped off at our various services across Surrey Choices, or directly into the community to attend activities.

The role would suit applicants with previous experience within passenger services or an interest in driving, who are looking for a rewarding role which will make a real difference to people’s lives by enabling them access to the local community.

• Provision of door-to-door transport services to the people we support into and home from services.
• Driving a company minibus, ensuring all service-users are transported safely and in line with all policies and procedures.
• Establishing positive and professional relationships with passengers, their carers/parents and key colleagues at the services and activities they attend.
• Ensuring passenger safety, including helping passengers on and off the vehicle when required.
• Performing regular vehicle checks in line with procedures and reporting any concerns or issues to the Senior Community Transport Driver or the Community Transport Manager.
• Operation of all vehicle equipment, including steps, seat belts, wheelchair clamps and tail lifts.
• Reporting any safeguarding concerns or issues to the Senior Community Transport Driver or Community Transport Manager.
• Ensuring the minibus is kept clean and tidy.

What we would like from you:

• Full UK driving licence (Maximum 6 penalty points at time of appointment) held for a minimum of two years for insurance purposes.
• 21+ for insurance purposes.
• Ability to support people using the services into and out of the vehicle.
• Willingness to be trained to drive a minibus.
• Willing to be fully trained in wheelchair safety and restraint when on vehicles.
• Ability to act effectively to diffuse any difficult situations on the vehicles and to write brief notes/reports on incidents.
• Ability to liaise over day-to-day concerns between home and services with tact and diplomacy.
• Clear verbal and written communication skills and ability to maintain written records including recording passenger complaints.
• Willingness to be flexible in terms of starting times, finishing times and locations (within an area).

What we can offer you:

• Full training given - career progression encouraged.
• £500 refer a friend scheme.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Automatic entry into Perkbox benefit scheme.
• Subsidised access to a Blue Light Card.

For an informal conversation and to find out more about this rewarding role, please contact Denise Hardwick.

Surrey Choices Ltd is an equal opportunities employer. Surrey Choices is a Real Living Wage Employer. All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and an Enhanced DBS Disclosure.