PRESS RELEASE

‘Go! Truro’ Shopmobility, in association with Volunteer Cornwall, will be hosting its first Awareness Day on Friday 20th August from 9am to 3pm on Lemon Quay, Truro. The event will celebrate the scheme enrolling its 100th member earlier this year and aims to raise the profile, awareness and funding for the scheme.

‘Go! Truro’ Shopmobility scheme is operated by Volunteer Cornwall Transport Department and is based in Moorfield Car Park, Calenick Street, Truro. The scheme has continued to expand in membership and usage since its launch in September 2008 and is supported by Volunteer Cornwall, Totally Truro Business Improvement District and Cornwall Council - in February of this year it received a grant from the Cornwall Community Foundation’s Adult Social Care Grant.

Go! Truro provides mobility equipment for loan to members of the public with temporary or permanent mobility disabilities. There is an initial membership fee of £5.00 which enables members to use the scheme as many times as they like for a year - although donations are gladly accepted. Whilst booking in advance is encouraged, it is possible to arrange equipment loan on the day, subject to availability.

Many shopmobility schemes in the UK do charge per hire, but by providing the equipment free at the point of use, ‘Go! Truro’ aims to reduce the risk of financial exclusion from the scheme and allow all to access the city and all its amenities.

‘Go! Truro’ has been very successful, allowing members of the public to access Truro and areas of the city which they would not have been able to do so otherwise. The scheme has also helped promote the city as an accessible location.  

Due to the popularity of the scheme and the increase in demand for membership, it is now looking to raise funds to expand the facilities and invest in more electric scooters. Increasingly, more people own their own scooter but find it difficult to transport them into the city centre and, as a result, are taking advantage of the ‘Go! Truro’ scheme.

Neil Scott, Totally Truro BID Manager said, “The Go! Truro shopmobility is an important step forward in making Truro more accessible for everyone. As the main funding body for the scheme, we are delighted that it has been such a success and is now looking to further expand.”

Brian Smith, who is the Manager of Volunteer Cornwall Transport department said, “We are proud to be operating Go! Truro Shopmobility Scheme as it helps to address isolation issues within Cornwall by, in many cases, providing the last leg of the journey to enable people regardless of their financial status to enjoy the facilities within Truro and compliments the many other schemes operated by the charity.”

In addition to raising awareness of the scheme and its funding needs, the Awareness Day on Friday 20th August will include fun and entertaining activities with a specially constructed obstacle course open to anyone over the age of 14 and even a competition open to over 16s to see who can complete the course in the fastest time! There will be a raffle with prizes donated by local businesses – the proceeds of which will go towards the scheme’s expansion programme.

Do come along and meet the staff from Go! Truro and Volunteer Cornwall and learn more about shopmobility in Truro and other locations across Cornwall. Also, learn more about volunteering opportunities, in particular, the Volunteer Cornwall Community Car Scheme which with its team of around 300 volunteer drivers covers over 2 million miles every year in Cornwall.

If you would like to get involved with the activities or find out more information about ‘Go! Truro’ Shopmobility or Volunteer Cornwall, then please head down to Lemon Quay on 20th August, or alternatively you can contact us by phone on  01872 241813, by e-mail at or visit the website on www.gotruro.co.uk .