St. James Centre
Based in Normanton, the St James Centre has served the Derby community for 30 years. They provide vital day services, short break activities, and alternative education for disabled children and adults, alongside advice and support services.
St. James Centre “We’ve had an excellent experience, a good deal and felt really looked after. We would recommend them to everyone!”
The Challenge
For the St. James Centre, providing inclusive services for disabled children and adults is at the heart of their mission. However, their reliance on external wheelchair-accessible taxis had become an operational barrier. The third-party vehicles provided were not consistently fit for purpose, and most importantly, presented significant safety concerns due to side-facing wheelchair positioning. This created unnecessary distress for service users and hindered the centre’s ability to provide a dignified, safe transport experience.
The solution
Following an initial enquiry, Toomey Leasing Group worked closely with the St. James Centre to understand their specific accessibility and safety requirements. We acted quickly to source a specialist wheelchair-accessible vehicle (WAV) that met their exact needs. By providing a vehicle designed for secure, forward-facing travel, we replaced the uncertainty of third-party transport with a reliable, owned solution that integrates seamlessly into the centre’s daily operations.
The outcome
The impact of this transition was immediate. Service users can now travel to and from the centre without the distress previously caused by unsuitable transport, allowing them to arrive ready to engage in activities. Furthermore, the centre has gained newfound freedom, enabling them to facilitate more community-based trips and outings. By resolving this fleet-related challenge, the St James Centre can focus more effectively on its primary goal: delivering high-quality education and support services to the Derby community.
Highlights
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Replaced side-facing taxi transport with a purpose-built WAV designed for secure, forward-facing travel.
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Reduced travel-related distress, ensuring service users arrive ready to participate.
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Enabled the centre to access community activities more frequently.
- Moved away from third-party booking dependency to a consistent, owned transport solution.
