A COMMUNITY transport scheme providing a vital service to at least 600 elderly, rurally isolated or disabled people in West Somerset is in desperate need of a permanent tailor-made base. The non-profit making company Accessible Transport West Somerset - Atwest - took over the reins of a service previously provided by the district's Council for Voluntary Service a year ago. But it is currently operating from a split site, with its administrative hub in the CVS offices in Quirke Street, Minehead, and its fleet of six vehicles half a mile away in a compound on the Mart Road enterprise estate. And Atwest manager Barbara Middleton said it was vital that a more suitable base was found soon to ensure the most efficient use of the organisation's funds. Atwest currently employs ten people and will shortly increase its staffing levels and vehicle fleet after winning the contract to run the SLINKY bus - a new on-demand service funded by Somerset County Council's Local Transport Plan. It already receives substantial grant aid from the county council and around £3,000 from West Somerset Council, the district authority. Mrs Middleton said drivers, in particular, faced problems daily because of the current split accommodation. "We provide a service for around 60 different groups and some of the people we transport are disabled, which means we have to remove seats from the vehicles to allow wheelchairs to be carried safely and securely. "At the moment this has to be done outside the office in Quirke Street, where it is very congested and difficult to park. "The seats have to be stored in the office, which is far from ideal." Mrs Middleton said ideally Atwest would like premises in Minehead but she revealed that an unsuccessful approach had been made to the district council to lease a unit from the soon to be developed former Wrigley's factory on Williton's Roughmoor industrial estate. The council bought the site more than 18 months ago and is planning a £1.7 million conversion and new-build project to create a total of 14 business units. Mrs Middleton said Atwest had been interested in leasing a unit because of the parking facilities there but had been told by the council that no "automotive" industries would be allowed on the site. "It is not as though we have a vehicle repair business - we simply want to park our fleet of vehicles," she said. "We would just love to have a base that would allow us to have everything in the same place. "If only we could make people aware of the good work that we do and the service we provide for the community." Cllr Hugh Davies, who represents Williton on the district council and who was contacted by Mrs Middleton, said he was disappointed that part of the Wrigley's site could not be allocated to Atwest. "The service this organisation provides is so important to the whole of West Somerset." Council spokeswoman Stacey Beaumont told the Free Press yesterday (Thursday) that although the office space at the Wrigley's development would have been appropriate for Atwest, the site was not suitable for its parking requirements. "Council officers have in the past met with Atwest and helped draw up a list of potential sites for them but it is regrettable that none of these have come to fruition. "However, we still have their requirements logged and we will contact them with details if anything suitable comes to our attention."
