I really fail to see the point of this charity. Surely if people have employment, like the youth mentioned, they should use this money to get their own transport.

I spent my early working years driving a cheap Nissan Cherry that cost me £100 and a little more to insure. This was done on my wages from working part time at Tesco (Whilst at 6th form, which I used public transport for) and was needed to do said work as I lived in a little village outside Trowbridge.

Because of my situation I had to make a difficult decision - pub with friends, or car so I can work and further my self. Perhaps over youths should take stock of their finances and not expect everything to be laid on a plate for them.

I think we are going to see more and more bizarre charities like this in trouble as time goes on. They are all popping out of the woodwork now that funding and charity is drying up.

Trowbo, we all did the 'nissan cherry' thing, it's part of growing up and becoming responsible. It's almost a given...

The youngsters today need everything spoonfed and handed to them on plates.

We must not upset our youngsters whatever we do must we.

They only use them to sit on outside McDonalds anyway I bet.
Wheels-to-Work should be Bike on a Plate.

How about a new concept, buy-a-banger, just like every other mug has had to.

I dont believe you were ever a 'without' Necker. You sound like a right spoon fed kinda guy. First car probably an MX-5 (mummy wanted you to be a hairdresser, like Yetiplank)no doubt. Bought for by mater and pater too. You what....they paid your insurance and tax too! So when the hairdressing fell through and you decided to frequent public forums and attempt to set yourself up as some kind of respectable commentator. Nice.

So what's wrong with saving up for a deposit and then buying a scooter on HP, paid for out of your wages ? Seemed to work well many years ago

Can I firstly respond to Trowbo's comments about young people on the Wheels-to-Work scheme using their wages to buy transport. The people we help through the scheme are either those who can't get to work at all or those who would not be able to get to and from work in a realistic timeframe because of transport difficulties. The fact that these young people can't access work means simply that they are unable to earn any money to buy their own transport with. The whole idea of the scheme is to stop this 'transport poverty cycle' i.e. if people can't get to work, they can't afford transport and if they can't afford transport they can't get to work. Many of the young people on the scheme are also from low income families and so their parents are often not in a position to buy them their first car etc. Even if this is the case, the costs of insuring a car driven by a first time driver are often prohibitively expensive.
In response to Necker's comments about young people on the scheme taking responsibility for their lives - the Wheels-to-Work scheme doesn't just give people a bike. To qualify for a bike, the young people on the scheme also have to put by a contribution each week for the use of their bike, budget for petrol costs, look after their bike, take responsibility for safe riding and also save up for their own transport after they come off the scheme (which is normally after about 6 months only.) By taking responsibility for saving for their own transport for instance, over two-thirds of the people provided with a bike by the scheme so far have saved up to buy their own 'wheels to work' having given their bike back. In reply to your comment about social use of the bikes - yes anyone on the scheme is allowed to use their bike for social purposes too - but a '3 strike' policy and regular client visits are used by the scheme to ensure that the privilege is not abused. Similarly being able to access social activities also means that young people are more inclined to remain living in local villages for example, rather than moving elsewhere. Spending in local shops, using local services, renting local housing and contributing to the local tax system all helps to make the local community of Wiltshire more viable as a going concern and young people are an important part of this too.
Lastly in response to realistic old man; again if young people can't get to work then it's simply not possible for them to put a deposit down on a bike etc. In addition, HP deals today are often either very expensive or simply not available to young people, which can either leave young people vulnerable to debt or financially excluded. The savings schemes which the majority of young people on the scheme use (Credit Unions) make finance available to young people in a way which is affordable and which requires them to save and budget before they can borrow.
I would be happy to answer any further specific questions in person. Thanks for your interest in the article and the scheme.
Liam Tatton-Bennett
Community Transport Manager
Community First
tel: (01380) 722475 ext. 243
email: transport@communityf
irst.org.uk

Liam
Thanks for taking the time to air your views.
We can see you are passionate about the charity and feel that you are doing a service to the lower income bracket of society in this case. I do admire you for this and it takes a commitment that many of us would fear to shoulder. It sounds like this is just one area of charitable service you cater for and in need of cash injection urgently. But some see it differently.
Don’t get me wrong you do a lot of very good work and I’m sure many can see this; your website in particular is very informative. But if you spread yourself over too many schemes with only government backing when the purse strings are tightened you must put on a business head and terminate the ‘sweet bits’ in order to keep the more substantial ‘fleshy bits’ going.
I’ve had a quick look on the internet and you can get some really cheap 50cc bikes, OK they might not pull the chicks like your new ones would or they might not have the kudos the youngsters require and demand nowadays, but life’s not about feeling good it’s about practicality and not living beyond your means.
The real issue here is the scarcity of local jobs within their local community and many youngsters willingness to do any job to pay their way. No matter how many scooters you hand out it’s a standard the youth are setting for themselves that’s driving this, maybe those standards are too high.
If you need to work, or really want to work you always do.

Necker,
Thanks for your reply and also for your supportive comments about the scheme and the work which is done by Community First in general.
To deal with your first point about government funding - Community First (an organisation which was incidentally has been going strong since 1965) is funded in a variety of ways and not just via government backing. Indeed in 2006/7, nearly a third of our income was earnt through our own trading meaning that our income streams are diverse. Following on from this, if we can bridge the funding gap we face currently, next year we have plans for the Wheels-to-Work scheme to become a self-supporting social enterprise, and so we are very much taking a business-oriented approach to this issue.
Turning to your point about cheap scooters. Even though the scooters you may have researched may be cheap, the insurance costs for a young person are substantial and often simply not affordable. Furthermore, even if certain young people were in a position to afford a cheap moped, then they wouldn't recive the safety advice, the mentoring support and the training which we provide them with through the Wheels-to-Work scheme. This type of support has helped over 60% of those we have issued a moped to have stay on in work or work-based training having given their bike back to us.
Turning to your point about scarcity of local jobs, by providing young people with a means to access job opportunities they want to pursue then we are encouraging them to remain living in local communities. This in turn helps to support the vibrancy of those local communities as local services can be supported by those young people, and in turn this helps to create jobs to address the job scarcity issue you raise. Lastly re. your point about young people taking on any job they can - surely if young people can access a job they like rather than one they just have to do, then they are more likely to stay in employment. Likewise - whilst I acknowldge your point about expectations of young people - surely we should be encouraging the next generation to stretch themselves to help make the local economy more competitive. Similarly, if they want a good lifestyle then they simply have to work for it - and the scheme encourages that hard work ethic. Thanks again for your interest. Liam.
Liam

Ignore Necker Mr Bennet. He's just one of a pair of Whinging Haves that keep on 'bobbing' on the surface membrane. Massive amounts of wasted monies elsewhere in our society deserve more of our collective time. Not whining on about initiatives like this that are inconsequential in fiscal terms to the tax payer. Good luck to you!

Some ideas are doomed to fail. Not because the instigators and team behind it are not passionate and willing to make it a success but because its not seen as being as beneficial by others.

These others fund it or are expected to in order for it to be a success.

Its not luck it's risk, the risk has been realized.

Necker,
I am not quite sure I follow you completely, but in response to your first point, the scheme is very much seen as being beneficial by others. Indeed a quote from a recent report by one of the scheme's funders, Wiltshire County Council reads: 'It is clear that the Wheels to Work initiative has been successful in helping to meet a need to provide access to employment and education opportunities that cannot be met by other means, and that the provision of further mopeds should help others to benefit.' Moreover I have a dossier with some 80 reports from clients who have been supported by the scheme who very nearly all see the scheme as being extremely beneficial to them. Additionally, I haven't mentioned the 'harder to measure benefits' that have clearly accrued to the local economy, communities, individuals and their families too.

In terms of realizing risk, there are always inherent risks with any project, but as I have said before, we are doing all we can to mitigate the risk involved by looking towards setting up a not-for-profit business to support the scheme in the long-term. In the meantime, bridging the funding gap is our priority. With this in mind, if you would like to make a donation to the scheme please contact me on (01380) 722475. Thanks.

"Teenager Jeremy Lane on his moped" appears to be on a public road minus his err... helmet!

Nit pickin score of 20!