A CHARITY may scrap its Tees Valley-wide community minibus service amid funding and volunteer shortages – just a year after taking delivery of two new buses.

The Tees Valley Rural Community Council, a registered charity and unconnected to local councils, was given two new16-seater accessible minibuses last year, to help voluntary organisations and isolated rural communities where bus subsidy cuts were having an impact.

But the Department for Transport-funded buses came two years later than expected, meaning the charity’s lottery funding to pay for the administration of the service had run out.

One of the latest villages to sign up was Sadberge, which has been hit hard by local authority bus subsidy cuts, meaning elderly residents and those without transport are effectively stranded in the village.

Since last year, the Sadberge Day Trippers group has enjoyed a monthly trip out and membership has swelled to 40.

Pat Lloyd, of Sadberge, who organises the trips, phoned the TVRCC to book July’s trip and was told the service was most likely stopping from June 30.

She said: “These day trips are a lifeline for people in our village.

“Taxis cost a fortune - £8 just to get out of Sadberge. People are trapped in the village. We have two buses which go out and leave the village within just a few hours on a Monday, and the rest of the time those of us without cars are stranded.

“To our day trippers this bus was a brilliant way of being able to get out, to meet people, see something different, and it was low-cost for them. Everyone is devastated.”

Rita Lawson, chief executive of Tees Valley Rural Community Council, said: “Unfortunately due to financial resources and other issues the trustees have made the decision that we will be reviewing the community transport. Between now and the end of June we are looking at any alternative way of being able to provide community transport. It may be that we do have to cease the operation but predominately it is because we are subsidising it as an organisation, and we are a charity.”

She said the lack of volunteer drivers meant staff had been driving the bus and this was unsustainable.