Volunteer Driver Service, Food Emergency Delivery

01/10/2026

Has VDS CIC journey mileage, in the first six months of this financial year, made it more than halfway to the moon?
Yes, yes we have :0)

2026/27 financial half-year figures

Unique (active) Volunteer Drivers: 190
Unique Patients/Clients: 1,203

Journeys
EMED: 308
CORE (paying clients): 3,932
Commissioned (paying service provider): 61
VDS FED and Winter Warmers: 42
Electric blanket testing: 3
Total Journeys: 4,346

Mileage
EMED: 13,812
CORE (paying clients): 106,147
Commissioned (paying service provider): 1,113
VDS FED and Winter Warmers: 277
Electric blanket testing: 187
Total Mileage: 121,536

If you think these amazing numbers are worth a few £, and are please able to help us with a donation to keep our incredible service going, you can donate here by clicking the image below.
Thank you so much 🙏

**If you aren't able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

Iʼm raising money to help the award winning Volunteer Driver Service to keep going.. Support this JustGiving Crowdfunding Page.

29/09/2026

**VDS FED**
If you are in need of emergency food and live in:
Banbury, Adderbury, Alkerton, Balscote, Barford St John, Barford St Michael, Bloxham, Bodicote, Broughton, Chacombe, Cropredy, Drayton, Great Bourton, Hanwell, Horley, Hornton, King's Sutton, Little Bourton, Middleton Cheney, Milcombe, Milton, Mollington, North Newington, Overthorpe, Shotteswell, Shutford, South Newington, Swacliffe, Tadmarton, Twyford, Wardington or Wroxton.

Please call:
0300 3030 125
or
Complete an online Food Emergency Delivery request form on the VDS CIC website.

**If this isn't for you PLEASE SHARE as it might be perfect for someone you know**

27/09/2026

**VDS CIC is one and a half years old**
18 months and one day ago VDS were closed down, and exactly 18 months ago VDS became a Community Interest Company (a not-for-pofit).

It's been a hard slog taking an incredible service like VDS, that wasn't deemed viable, to something still going and still growing.

What have we done in those 18 months (although we incorporated 27/03/2025 we didn't do our first journey until 06/06/2025).

Unique (active) Volunteer Drivers: 234
Unique Patients/Clients: 2,102

Journeys
EMED: 1,130
CORE (paying clients): 8,720
Commissioned (paying service provider): 112
VDS FED and Winter Warmers: 184
Electric blanket testing: 29
Total Journeys: 10,175

Mileage
EMED: 48,454
CORE (paying clients): 244,952
Commissioned (paying service provider): 1,872
VDS FED and Winter Warmers: 1,396
Electric blanket testing: 1,588
Total Mileage: 298,262

If you’d like to help us keep providing journeys for many years to come, you can donate here:
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/keith-davies-346
Thank you so much :0)

**If you aren't able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

22/09/2026

VDS CIC has some new mapping technology. This is what VDS FED has done since our creation 07/07/2025.

There are:
101 households
227 boxes
157 adults
109 children
27 referrals to The Banbury Larder for additional support beyond the presenting food crisis.

VDS FED is just 1% of VDS CIC operations. However, it is a truly valuable addition for the community of Banbury and nearby.

VDS FED is without a grant at the moment so our continued existence is completely reliant on public donations.

The cost of each box, to get out there to people in food crisis, is around £10.00.

If you are able to support VDS FED and the community we serve, please donate by clicking this link:

https://www.crowdfunder.co.uk/p/volunteer-driver-service---food-emergency-delivery

Thank you so much 🙏

**If you are not able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

18/09/2026

**Please help**
VDS CIC have been rather busy over the past 30-days. If you are please able to help us with a few £ donation, to keep our incredible service going, you donate here:
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/keith-davies-346/

Thank you so much 🙏

**If you aren't able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

09/09/2026

VDS FED did our first food delivery 10/07/2025. Today will see our 100th household supported. VDS FED has supported 156 adults and 106 children with 223 emergency food boxes. Our partnership with The Banbury Larder has seen 25 households referred to them for support beyond the presenting food crisis.

VDS FED is just 1% of VDS CIC operations. However, it is a truly valuable addition for the community of Banbury and nearby.

VDS FED has been unsuccessful in grant funding from CDC this year, so we are operating on a donations-only basis until further grant funding can be found. The length of time VDS FED will be able to maintain a donations-only operation will depend on the level of donations compared to the level of requests for emergency food support. The CDC funding was supposed to end in September 2026. Although the HSF7 grant does state '50 food supporting journeys' and we are currently on 42. With the 8 journeys we are still obliged to fulfil for HSF7, and the £325 so far through donations, VDS FED should be able to get to around Christmas, maybe the New Year.

The cost of each box, to get out there to people in food crisis, is around £10.00.

If you are able to support VDS FED and the community we serve, please donate by clicking the graphic.

**If you are not able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

To ensure VDS FED is able to provide a sustainable emergency food delivery provision.

30/08/2026

**Please help VDS FED**
VDS FED are operating with no grant funding presently, so are completely reliant on donations. A huge thank you for the donations that have already been made, these donations have secured delivery of 32 emergency food boxes.

If you are able to donate in order to keep our incredible service going please click the graphic:

Thank you so much 🙏

**If you aren't able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

To ensure VDS FED is able to provide a sustainable emergency food delivery provision.

10/08/2026

Thank you very much Banbury Grumpy Man for putting this together for VDS FED. In all honesty we have had a nightmare with grants so far this year, and not just for VDS FED but for Volunteer Driver Service (VDS) too. VDS FED is less than 2% of the VDS operation.

We haven't been funded to improve our wheelchair position because we were too new an organisation.

We haven't been funded to provide countywide community transport data, twice... This is through OCC adult social care, say that out loud to yourself 'OCC adult social care do not support VDS' when you do that also say 'OCC Public Health do not support VDS either'.

We haven't been funded to restart Volunteer Connect, a project that helps other organisations find much needed volunteers.

Some Parish Councils do not support VDS, and sometimes we only ask for £30.00 towards our costs for a year.

VDS FED hasn't been funded this year, not by the superyacht that Banbury Grumpy Man mentions but by our own CDC pedalo.

VDS has seen some better news in this desert, oasis's have been provided by Sanctuary Housing, OCC transport, CDC Community Services, some Town and Parish Councils, many of our own volunteer drivers, many of our passengers, soon to be joined by Oxfordshire Freemasons. Although it wasn't financial help one issue would have been impossible to sort without the help of Sean Woodcock MP.

If the three directors of VDS CIC hadn't worked for the last year and a half for well below minimum wage it wouldn't be just VDS FED struggling but the entire organisation. VDS CIC operates at +\- 5% of our break even. I thank my two fellow directors, for their commitment to what we believe in, with all my heart.

Even with the odds stacked firmly against us, VDS has somehow managed to have a reserve that'll keep us going well into 2027.

I want to thank everyone who helps VDS to exist from one day to the next, as for the people who take us for granted, you shouldn't because the future of VDS is not assured.

Please help us by making a donation:
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/keith-davies-346
If you are not able to do that please share our posts.

Thank you for listening

Keith Davies, BCAc

https://fb.watch/IVMLU2IZm4/

08/08/2026

**Please Share - Danger of VDS FED Ending**
VDS Food Emergency Delivery (VDS FED) grant funding ceases in September 2026. VDS FED were not fortunate enough to be awarded a grant for 2026/27 from the same source. There are other funding streams and we will need to tap one.

In the meantime we will need the help of the public to keep our incredible emergency food distribution service going in Banbury and the surrounding area.

The cost of each box, to get out there to people in food crisis, is around £10.00. So VDS FED is introducing 'Sponsor an Emergency Food Box'. If people can please donate we'll let you know how many food boxes 📦 in total through your support are good to go or have already been sent.

Please donate by clicking the image below. Thank you so much 🙏

**If you are not able to donate, sharing our post helps loads too**

To ensure VDS FED is able to provide a sustainable emergency food delivery provision.