West Midlands other schemes

Patient Transport Services   

  The Non-Emergency Patient Transport Service (NEPTS) is for patients who: 

• Need to travel to and from an appointment at a hospital or clinic   
• Are discharged from hospital (and meet the eligibility criteria), or   
• Need to transfer between centres, and because of their medical condition cannot make their own way.   

 Meeting the eligibility criteria for transport   

The criteria that determine whether or not you are eligible for NEPTS have been set by the Department of Health and are based upon whether your medical condition prevents you from travelling by any other means.

All operators of patient transport are now required to apply these rules, so whilst you may have previously been able to use patient transport this may no longer be the case if you are not deemed eligible. 

Making a booking  

Non-emergency patient transport is provided by West Midlands Ambulance Service (WMAS). There are different contact numbers for booking in each West Midlands area. Use the drop-down menu in the ‘Our Contracts’ section on the WMAS website, to check the most appropriate for you.

• Birmingham, Sandwell and Solihull: 0121 307 9118
• Coventry and Warwickshire: 01926 310312
• Wolverhampton and Dudley: 01384 679047

Further information can be found on the WMAS website.

Voluntary community cars   

  Managed by a mixture of volunteers and charities, community cars can help people to stay independent, participate in their communities and access vital public services and employment. They can help you go shopping, get to medical appointments, visit friends and family or enjoy a day out.   

Most need to be booked in advance and may have eligibility criteria you need to meet.     

Practical things to think about and questions to ask when looking for a community transport provider include:   

• What type of journey are you making? Some schemes are specific and can only help in certain situations, for example, medical appointments.   
• Are you eligible to use the scheme?   
• Does the scheme cover your area? There are many good neighbour volunteer schemes in rural parts of the country which are for people who live in those villages.   
• How much notice is required to book a trip?    
• Is there a cost involved?   
• How to book?   
• Does it meet any accessibility requirements you have? For example, wheelchairs and scooters or getting in and out of the car.    

Royal Voluntary Service

Volunteers offer Community and Patient Transport Services to help people get to where they need to go. Find out about the transport services in your area via the link below.

Companion driving services  

Paid companion driver services should be registered with the local authority in the same way as regular taxis.   

Helping Hands  

Helping Hands focus on tasks such as running errands, grocery shopping and support with social activities.

Contact: 0333 060 4041  

 Driving Miss Daisy 

Driving Miss Daisy is a national organisation who have franchises across the region.   

Contact: 0333 014 6211       

Appointments Buddy

Provide companion driving services with a qualified carer. Trips include medical appointments, shopping, hairdressers, social visits and days out. Areas covered include Wolverhampton, Walsall, Cannock, Kinver, Kingwinford, Penn, Wombourne, Didley and West Bromwich.

Contact: 07778 145597