Coronavirus/COVID-19: Guidance for Community Transport

Last updated on 30 March 2021

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General Guidance and FAQs

Guidance from the UK Government, Scottish Government, Northern Ireland Executive and Welsh Government is no longer consistent. With different restrictions and levels of re-opening in place across the UK, each operator should decide if a journey is permissible in their local area. Below you can find links to the specific guidance in each country as well as some answers that do apply to everyone.

• What services can can I run in:
  • England
  • Wales
  • Scotland
  • Northern Ireland

• How many people can I carry on my vehicle? 
• Can I run a trip with a full vehicle if my passengers have been vaccinated? 
• What can I do if a MiDAS certificate is expiring and I can’t access training? 
• One of my drivers is turning 70 and can’t access a medical – can they still drive for us?
• Can I travel to work to operate/coordinate any services we’re running?

Vaccinations 

• What is your guidance for community transport providers taking people to get vaccinated?

Running your services safely

We’ve produced detailed guidance on how to run services in a safe and COVID-secure environment. You can access the full guidance by clicking here or jump directly to any of the sections listed below. The guidance will open in a separate page.

• What is CTA’s guidance on running services?
• What do I need to consider when creating coronavirus specific risk assessments?
• What are some of the general things I need to think about when running services?
• What is the workplace guidance information where I am?
• What’s the most up to date guidance on social distancing where I am?
• What is the guidance on the use of PPE and face coverings?
• How do I support staff and volunteers to get back to work?
• What about if my volunteers are older?
• How do we make our vehicles as safe as possible?
• What is your advice for running a community car scheme?
• What measures will help us support our passengers and keep them safe?

Additional information and resources to support CTA members

We’ve put together a number of resources available to download to support community transport providers as they begin to re-start their services. Some of these are resources that we’ve put together, and others are resources from CTA members that we thought are worth sharing.

• Resources and funding programmes in response to coronavirus.
• What other advice is out there?
• Resources on risk assessment and risk management (this will open in a new window)
• Resources on supporting staff and volunteers (this will open in a new window).

Guidance and FAQs

Guidance and FAQs for members in England 

Whilst the national lockdown has been effective and cases of COVID-19 are now falling, people in England have started seeing restrictions being lifted as part of the UK Government’s roadmap.  The Government have said that the roadmap offer a route back to a more normal life, however all the dates for each stage are ‘no earlier than’ i.e they are indicative and may be subject to change. 

The ‘stay at home’ rule ended on 29th March, however many restrictions remain in place. Social contact indoors is still forbidden apart from in households and bubbles, for example, and the rules state that individuals should minimise the number of journeys you make where possible and  should continue to work from home if they can.  For the latest information, you can find the UK Government’s main coronavirus guidance page here. 

What services am I allowed to run under the current restrictions?

Under the current phase of the UK Government’s roadmap for lifting lockdown, people are no longer being instructed to stay at home but it is still the case that people are recommended to “minimise the number of journeys you make where possible.” 

Whilst you are no longer limited to only running essential journeys, such as trips to medical settings, you will therefore still be limited in where you can take people because most non-essential journey destinations still remain closed. This will change with each step of the roadmap which you can find here. As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from the Government on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here.  

I operate a volunteer car scheme – are we able to run our services?

The current guidance from the UK Government on car sharing, which is the closest guidance there is for voluntary car schemes, still states that “car sharing is not permitted with someone from outside your household or your support bubble unless your journey is undertaken for an exempt reason” which means that services are still restricted to essential journeys only.  

This means that you are still able run journeys taking people to essential services such as hospital, GP and other medical appointments and to buy goods or services from premises that are open, including essential retail, but cannot undertake non-essential journeys if the driver is not in the same bubble as the passenger. As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from the Government on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here. 

What is the UK Government’s current guidance on shielding?

Advice from the UK Government for those classed as clinically extremely vulnerable to shield is still in place until 01 April – from then it will no longer be required for clinically extremely vulnerable individuals to shield. You can find information about this change here, and the UK Government’s guidance on shielding here.  

Useful links:

• The UK Government’s main coronavirus guidance page 
• You can find the UK Government’s transport guidance for operators here.
• You can find the UK Government’s transport guidance for passengers here. 
• UK Government Guidance on School Transport 
• UK Government Guidance on Social Distancing
• UK Government Guidance for people who are defined as clinically extremely vulnerable.

Once you’ve taken a look at the rules and guidance, you can click here for CTA’s advice on what to consider when running any services in the current environment.

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Guidance and FAQs for members in Wales 

After seeing a significant drop in cases over the last three months of national lockdown at alert level 4, Welsh Government have gradually begun to ease restrictions as the country shifts to alert level 3 from March 27th 2021 and with further reviews and gradual changes based on a three-week review cycle. The key message from Welsh Government remains: ‘We are asking people to think about what is the most sensible thing for you to do to protect your family, friends and your community, rather than thinking primarily about what you are allowed to do’. You can find the Welsh Government’s main coronavirus guidance page here. 

What services am I allowed to run under the current restrictions? 

Under the current guidance from the Welsh Government people no longer have to ‘stay local’. Whilst this means you are no longer limited to only running essential journeys such as trips to medical settings, you will therefore still be very limited in where you can take people because most non-essential journey destinations still-remained closed. You can find Welsh Government’s FAQs here which give an overview of what is open and what remains restricted.  

As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from the Welsh Government on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here.  

I operate a volunteer car scheme – are we able to run our services?

The current guidance from the Welsh Government on private car sharing, which is the closest guidance there is for voluntary car schemes, still states that “If you normally share a vehicle with people from other households (other than your extended household), you should find a different way to travel” which means that services are still restricted to essential journeys only.  

This means that you are still able run journeys taking people to essential services such as hospital, GP and other medical appointments and to buy goods or services from premises that are open, including essential retail, but cannot undertake non-essential journeys if the driver is not in the same bubble as the passenger. As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure.  You can find CTA’s advice on this here. 

What is the Welsh Government’s guidance on shielding? 

Advice from the Welsh Government is for those classed as clinically extremely vulnerable to shield and is still in place until 01 April 2021 where it will be ‘paused’. From then it will no longer be required for clinically extremely vulnerable individuals to shield unless told otherwise. You can find the Welsh Government’s latest information on shielding here. 

Useful links

• Wesh Government’s main coronavirus guidance page here. 
• Welsh Government’s most recent FAQs on restrictions here 
• Welsh Government’s guidance for passengers  
• Welsh Government’s guidance for transport operators 
• Welsh Government’s guidance on sheilding 

Once you’ve taken a look at the rules and guidance in your area, you can click here for CTA’s advice on what to consider when running any services in the current environment.

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Guidance and FAQs for members in Scotland

Scottish Government continues to take a cautious and steady approach to lifting restrictions, which is being reviewed every three weeks. Until 02 April a stay at home requirement is still in place for people across Scotland. On 30 March, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said: “Remember that you must stay in your local authority, unless your travel is for an essential purpose.”  You can find the Scottish Government’s main coronavirus guidance page here. 

What services am I allowed to run under the current restrictions? 

Until 02 April, a stay at home requirement is still in place for people across Scotland which means that people shouldn’t travel unless they have an essential reason. This means that community transport  providers can still only provide essential journeys. You can find information about permitted travel here.  On 02 April the stay at home requirement will be replaced with a ‘stay local’ message and certain restrictions will also be lifted on 05 April. You can find the Scottish Government’s timetable for lifting restrictions here. 

When the stay at home requirement is lifted you will be able to run certain non-essential journeys depending on what is open in your area. As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from the Scottish Government on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here. 

I operate a volunteer car scheme – are we able to run our services?

The current guidance from the Scottish Government on car sharing, which is the closest guidance there is for voluntary car schemes still states that “you should not share a vehicle with anyone from another household, unless you absolutely have to.” This means that you will only be able to deliver essential journeys such as transport to and from hospital settings.  As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from the Scottish Government on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here. 

What is the Scottish Government’s guidance on shielding? 

Various levels of shielding guidance is still in place for vulnerable individuals across Scotland who have been told that they have to shield. You can find the latest information on shielding here. 

Useful links:

• Scottish Government’s main Coronavirus guidance page 
• Scottish Government’s timetable for lifting restrictions 
• Scottish Government’s guidance on travel and transport 
• Scottish Government’s guidance on shielding  

Once you’ve taken a look at the rules and guidance in your area, you can click here for CTA’s advice on what to consider when running any services in the current environment.

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Guidance and FAQs for members in Northern Ireland

In order to reduce the spread of coronavirus and to help manage the pressures on the health and social care system, everyone in Northern Ireland is instructed to stay at home. You must not leave your home without reasonable excuse. See what constitutes a ‘reasonable excuse’ here. 

What services am I allowed to run under the current restrictions? 

The current restrictions in Northern Ireland are due to be reviewed on 15 April – until then the guidance is that everyone must stay at home unless they have a reasonable excuse. This also means that people should avoid all non-essential travel and subsequently that you will only be able to run essential journeys. You can find details of what constitutes essential travel here. As ever it is important to make sure that any journeys you run are COVID-secure. You can find advice from NI Direct on this here and you can find CTA’s advice here.  

What is the Northern Ireland Executive’s guidance on shielding? 

Currently in Northern Ireland, clinically extremely vulnerable people are still being asked to stay at home however a gradual easing of the advice for shielding is planned to commence on 12 April 2021. You can find more information on the plans here.  

Useful links:

Once you’ve taken a look at the rules and guidance in your area, you can click here for CTA’s advice on what to consider when running any services in the current environment.

• NI Executive main coronavirus guidance page 
• NI Executive guidance for transport operators 
• NI Executive guidance for passengers 
• NI Executive guidance on shielding.   

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UK-wide FAQs

How many people am I allowed to carry on my vehicle?

The guidance on distancing remains that where possible, people should stay 2m away from each other. If this isn’t possible, this can be reduced to 1m+ with additional control measures in place, for example wearing face coverings, good ventilation through the vehicle and hand washing.

In practice, this means that those CT operators who have restarted delivering services have conducted a risk assessment which looks at the layout of the vehicle, the length of journey and so on, before deciding on a seating plan which can then help you decide the best approach to passenger numbers. Back to table of contents

If my passengers have been fully vaccinated, can I run a trip with a full bus?

While we understand that many CT passengers have now had two doses of their COVID-19 vaccination, there has been no guidance from any of the UK’s governments around what this might mean for accessing services. While there are discussions ongoing about the potential for vaccine passports and reduced restrictions around things like social distancing, the outcomes of this are not yet clear. We also know that while CT operators are keen to find their way to the ‘new normal’, no-one wants to run the risk of unintentionally discriminating against someone who is not able to access vaccination. 

Until further guidance is issued on this by governments around the country, social distancing regulations still apply and we recommend that CT operators use their risk management strategies to assess the safest approach to transporting their passengers, including around passenger numbers on vehicles. Back to table of contents

My driver(s) have MiDAS certificates which are due to expire soon, and my MiDAS trainer isn’t able to offer me training yet. Is there anything I can do?

This is something that has been a real concern for a lot of members. We have an online form where you can request an extension to your certificate at ctauk.org/training/midas/do-you-want-to-extend-your-midas-certificate/. These are currently being granted for three months on a rolling basis. Even as restrictions ease, we will continue to grant extensions to those unable to access training.  Back to table of contents

One of my volunteer drivers is turning 70 in a few weeks and can’t get a medical at their GPs due to COVID-19 restrictions, so cannot renew their D1 (101) entitlement. Can they still drive for us?

This is an issue which has affected a lot of drivers throughout the pandemic. Please find below a statement from the DVLA:  

“DVLA is aware of the current difficulties drivers are having in trying to obtain medical examination reports to renew their driving entitlement. Our focus has been to help keep drivers on the road and vital supply chains moving during the coronavirus pandemic…The Agency is not currently processing applications for a renewal of C1 and D1 (101) on car licences first issued before 1997, unless drivers can provide a D4 medical report. If drivers cannot provide a D4, they should not apply to renew this entitlement at this time. These arrangements are exceptional. The Government has had to balance the need to keep drivers on the road in the current crisis and the risks to road safety. The scope of the arrangements are considered to be a reasonable balance in present circumstances. The arrangements will be kept under review as the situation develops. In the meantime, drivers can renew their ordinary driving entitlement at gov.uk/renew-driving-licence-at-70 . Drivers can then renew their C1 and D1 entitlement at a later date when they can obtain a medical examination from a qualified doctor who is registered and licensed to practice in the UK.” 

So unfortunately, if a driver isn’t able to access a medical at the moment then they will only be able to drive a minibus if they meet the Category B license restrictions. A big concern for a lot of drivers in this position is that this means they will lose their entitlement to drive a minibus completely. However, the good news is that as soon as they have a medical, they can retrospectively apply to retain their entitlement. Back to table of contents

Am I allowed to travel to work to operate/coordinate any services we’re running?

Guidance still states that everyone that can work from home should still work from home. However, for most who work in the community transport sector, working from home is not practical. If you can’t work from home, you are therefore allowed to travel to your place of work to run your services.

Please note this is with the proviso that you do not have to self-isolate due to yourself or anyone in your household displaying symptoms of coronavirus or coming into contact with someone who has symptoms, or the virus itself. If anyone involved in running your services should be self-isolating due to these reasons, they should not be coming into work.

• Any workplaces must follow social distancing guidance. The UK Government has put together information on how to work safely during coronavirus, which you can find here.
  • Workplace safety guidance from the Welsh Government can be found here.
  • Workplace safety guidance from the Scottish Government can be found here.
  • Workplace safety guidance from the Northern Ireland Executive can be found here.

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Vaccinations

What is CTA’s guidance on community transport providers taking people to get vaccinated?

With the COVID-19 vaccination programme now being rolled out, many community transport providers are getting involved with making sure that members of their community can access the vaccine. It is anticipated that there will be a large number of individuals in the higher risk categories who need to travel to vaccination and test centres, who may need to call upon CT services. This is a situation that is likely to continue for several months into 2021.

We’ve put together a number of indicators and guidelines to support organisations as they begin to provide transport for the COVID-19 vaccination roll-out. As the vaccination programme develops we will be adding new guidance, so check back here for any updates.

Download our transport to vaccination guidance

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Running your services safely

Our guidance on running your services

We’ve produced detailed guidance on how to run services in a safe and COVID-secure environment. You can access the full guidance by clicking the link below. The guidance will open in a new page.

Access our guidance on running your services

Back to table of contents.

Funding programmes in response to coronavirus 

We know that funding is a real concern for community transport providers at the moment, with many of their sources of income no longer being viable in the face of coronavirus, and many of their overheads still in place.

There are however, a number of different funding sources that are offering emergency funding to charities and organisations going through these sorts of difficulties.

We’ve put together a list of other potentially useful funds at ctauk.org/coronavirus-funding-and-resources/.

Given the rapidly changing situation, there are new programmes emerging regularly so this is not an exhaustive list and we will be updating it with new information, so keep checking back.

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What other advice is out there?

As mentioned above, it’s important to keep up to date with the latest advice using the links on the first page of this document.

NCVO have also produced advice and resources for voluntary organisations concerned about coronavirus including risk management processes and organisational planning: 

• NCVO: latest information and advice 

There is also specific advice and information from various other charities:  

• Diabetes UK has provided an updated information page for people living with diabetes.  
• Asthma UK has released a blog post with advice for people with asthma. 
• The British Heart Foundation has published guidance for people with health problems.  

• The National Eczema Society has offered advice on handwashing techniques for people with eczema and other skin conditions.  
• SignHealth has created British Sign Language (BSL) videos to help deaf BSL users either working in charities or receiving support.  
• Carers UK has produced recommendations for carers.  
• Full Fact has generated a fact check page on covid-19 to help dispel any false information. 

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The CTA Advice Service

CTA Advice Service: The CTA team are currently working remotely, so to ensure you speak to the right person first time, please email advice@ctauk.org to receive a call back for advice and support. Our advice service operates 10-4pm Monday-Friday.

Advice Service Drop-in: due to the changing nature of the situation, our advice team will be holding a weekly online drop-in where members can join a video call to talk to the team and each other about the latest guidance and ask any questions. You can find a recap of the latest session, along with details of our next call on ctauk.org/blog.

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