Dunedin community transport provider Plus Bus has used a funding grant from Thankyou Charitable Trust to establish a trial service for Mosgiel people.
Social enterprise and online payroll provider Thankyou Payroll supports business owners and operators by providing online payroll software and acting as an IRD intermediary for payday filing obligations.
In addition, 25c per person per pay is donated to the Thankyou Charitable Trust and distributed to communities via micro-grants of up to $3000.
Thankyou Payroll has offices in Wellington and Dunedin.
Plus Bus received $500 from Thankyou Charitable Trust, as one of 13 organisations in the Dunedin South area funded.
In 2018-19 Thankyou Payroll gave out 45 grants totalling $81,500 in Dunedin, Wellington and Christchurch.
Operated by the Dunedin Community Transport Trust, Plus Bus provides an affordable and accessible service for people needing to go out for grocery shopping.
Its clients are mostly elderly residents, or people recovering from injury or surgery.
Plus Bus co-ordinator Kasia Beale said the Thankyou Charitable Trust grant was a critical factor in establishing a four-month trial of the service in Mosgiel.
``I've been wanting to start a run in Mosgiel for some time and this grant was an absolute godsend.
``The grant covers our petrol costs and has allowed me to extend our services from three to four days a week and provide a valuable service to transport-disadvantaged clients in the Mosgiel region,'' Ms Beale said.
There will be four rounds of postcode-based grants provided in 2019. The next Dunedin round is for the Kaikorai Valley-Wakari-Brockville-Mornington area.
Each grant round is open for a month, and applications can be made via:
http://www.thankyoucharitabletrust.org/can-i-apply.html
BRENDA.HARWOOD @thestar.co.nz
