MORE people can get involved to help the elderly and disabled get out and about in the local community by volunteering for the Trowbridge Guild of Community Service.

The organisation which was set up in 1972 is looking for more drivers for their minibuses, but feel the group escapes many younger people’s notice. Chairman Stephen Brackenbury wants more people to know about the service they offer in order to get more people involved.

He said: “We would like more people to know what we do and the services we provide to help people in the town.

“Most people don’t know much about the Trowbridge guild at all.

“Our prime requirement at the moment is for volunteer drivers, of which we could do with another one or two of.

“Our drivers are normally part time. We are also looking for a guild secretary.

“We have two minibuses, both brand new which form the core of our work for the community.

“The whole idea is that we are trying to keep the elderly and handicapped in their own homes but also the get them out and mixing with the community.

“We drive them to their clubs and to do their shopping and even maybe for a day out down in Bournemouth or Weymouth or somewhere like that.

“We get a lot of people using these services, they are out around 80 per cent of the week.

“The busses are fully wheelchair accessible and there is plenty of room for walking frames as well as their shopping and trolleys. They are fully equipped for elderly people.

The guild was formed in 1972 by the Social Services Department of Wiltshire Council and volunteers in the Trowbridge community. They were registered as a charity in 1976.

In 1991, Mrs E Wright who lived in Hilperton, left a sum of money to the Trowbridge Guild of Community Service for the guild to help elderly people in Trowbridge and Hilperton to stay in their own homes.

Since then the guild has managed the investment from that legacy and the distribution of the income to help run the organisation.

To fund out more about how you can become either a driver or secretary for the Trowbridge Guild of Community Service, please call 01225752328 or email admin@trowbridgeguild.org.uk