Flexible community transport

About Us

Who are First and Last Mile CIC?

First And Last Mile connects the communities and people in villages around Eynsham to each other and also to major bus and train connections

First and Last Mile is a volunteer-led non-profit company, driven to reinstate the rural community transport bus services to villages in and around Eynsham in a sustainable way through innovation. The current core services are the 411 and 418 running North and South of Eynsham,. These are new versions of the old 11 and 18 services which were subject to funding cuts, after being deemed unprofitable.

In saying we are volunteer-led we mean we are run by volunteers. Yet we do pay some of our drivers. Running a 2-hourly scheduled service Monday to Friday every week isn't possible to do with just volunteers, day in day out. We know because we tried it!

Our innovations include acting as a feeder service to other transport options. in this way, we aren't in competition, but rather complement other public transport services in a win-win setup.

A major goal is to drive down operational costs through leasing, going electric and other technologies.

Mission Statement:

Any community service is only as good as its identification with that community. The best way forward is with collaborative and co-operative relationships with Councils, other community collectives and businesses . The goal being to deliver sustainable rural community transport.

Our Vision:

We deliver exemplary service for areas in Oxfordshire which have not had great public transport options.

Our ambition is to dovetail our transpoprt services with local and indeed national infrastructure activities and services. We help provide new employment opportunities to those living in rutal locations. Also we provide better access to key health services like doctors and hospitals.

What drives us is creating sustainable, affordable, and flexible community transport that is not in competition with other services. Rather it complements existing services. Together we can deliver a wider, comprehensive, connective, transport service within both rural and suburban areas of Oxfordshire.

The Team

First and Last Mile is primarily led by volunteers and have three people on our board of directors:

Andy Swarbrick

– Director
Andy has working in the IT industry for most of his career working across Europe and the USA. He has also run various startup companies. Customers have included Thames Water, ICI and Boots. In latter years he has worked for Parcelforce both delivering and in the depot.

David Miles

– Director
David has been the Witney Parish Transport Representative for over 30 years, which has meant developing a wide knowledge of local bus services and their passengers. He has volunteered at West Oxfordshire Community Transport since 2017 and is a former Director of OXNAV and has gained experience of different types of community transport. He has also been a Team Leader in charge of up to 40 exam markers and reorganised aspects of mail deliveries in Oxford.

Emily Lewis-Edwards

– Director

Emily is joint CEO of Community First Oxfordshire (CFO) www.communityfirstoxon.org CFO is a community development charity which helps communities and individuals to identify issues that affect them, and find their own solutions.

Emily has worked with total and urban communities for several years, supporting the County’s community transport sector to thrive. She leads on placemaking projects in new developments at Heyford Park and Graven Hill. Emily has a PG Cert in Transport planning.

In addition to our directors, there is a dedicated team of local residents, including a school administrator, current and former schoolteachers, a ceramicist, an internet entrepreneur, and two former scientists, who have helped in the setting up of the organisation.

Our team has room to grow as we move into the operational phase, and we would love to have you join us!

If you would like to volunteer in any capacity, please contact us. We are always looking to expand our pool of diverse and friendly volunteer drivers.

Contact Us

A range of shifts is available to volunteers, and we will be flexible and accommodating when agreeing hours. Each shift will be assigned two or more individuals who will share the driving, to ensure coverage of holidays and other absences. In addition, a team of “floating” drivers will be available to cover unforeseen circumstances. All drivers will need a valid “D1” licence – this was standard for those who gained their driver’s licence before January 1st 1997. Volunteers will be provided with full training and familiarised with the route before driving commences.

For more details see our volunteer page

Volunteer
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