People’s Choice Award 2023 Bronze £1-£2 million turnover
What would you do if you could no longer drive and didn’t have access to any other transport? How would you get to the shops and medical appointments and how would you maintain a sense of belonging in your local community?
We know that Waverley hoppa Community Transport is the answer to all these questions, but we are also aware that not enough people know that hoppa is here for them.
To raise awareness about hoppa and to address some of the misconceptions about who can use the service, we worked with a student filmmaker from Godalming Sixth Form College to tell our story.
Our brief was to create a fly on the wall film that gives a true insight into what people can expect when they use hoppa. We wanted to show our caring, friendly drivers in action and to give people who are thinking about using hoppa a chance to familiarise themselves with how the service works.
Although the film’s primary purpose is to reach potential new customers, we also want to show potential funders and supporters how hoppa is about more than getting people from A to B and how access to transport reduces isolation and loneliness and enables people to engage in their community. These messages support UN Sustainable Development Goal 3 (Good health and well-being) and 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities).
In support of our strategic priority to reduce our carbon footprint and UN Sustainable Development Goal 13 (Climate action), we were also keen for the film to showcase our electric bus and the implicit message that travelling by bus is kinder to the environment.
As a not-for-profit organisation that looks after every penny, the film has to work hard for us and fulfil more than one purpose. Despite this, our overarching priority was to capture why so many passengers describe hoppa as a 'lifeline' and why it is so much more than a bus. Thanks to the candidness of everybody who took part we think the film fulfils its brief.
Every year hoppa makes an extraordinary difference to thousands of people living in Waverley, a rural area in south west Surrey.
Waverley hoppa is a community transport service for people who do not have access to any other transport when they need it. We pick up passengers from their home and take them to their chosen destination.
Hoppa buses help provide a solution to societal issues such as loneliness and enable people to remain independent for longer. Having access to transport means our customers can go about their lives and fulfil basic needs such as doing their shopping, dealing with business affairs, meeting friends, attending medical appointments and staying connected with the world beyond their front door.
As well as caring for our passengers’ quality of life, we care about the environment too. We are committed to having a cleaner bus fleet and are switching from diesel to electric buses. This will help to clean up the air in our towns and villages and provide passengers with an affordable greener travel option.
The results of our most recent customer satisfaction survey show how much hoppa is valued by the people who use the service. We would like to see even more people choosing hoppa and made the film to demonstrate why hoppa is so much more than a bus.
We align with the following UN Sustainable Development Goals:
