Book a Trip

Book a trip

Serving residents of Mere, East Knoyle, Kilmington, Sedgehill and Semley, Stourton with Gasper, Maiden Bradley, Kingston and Monkton Deverill, West Knoyle, Zeals and Bourton and patients from Mere and Silton surgeries who live elsewhere. If you’re outside this area, try Community First for other Link and transport services in Wiltshire.

You can book a trip for a medical appointment, or (if a driver is available) a shopping trip or a daytime social event.

One of our volunteer co-ordinators will answer your call on her home phone. She will take the details of the trip, ring round our volunteer drivers to find one who can make the journey and then call you back to confirm your booking.

Help us to help you . . .

  • Book at least two days in advance unless the appointment was made at the last minute. This doesn’t include weekends, so if the trip is on Monday, you should book by the previous Thursday,
  • Call only during the hours shown. Remember you are calling a private home, not an office.
  • Let us know as soon as you can if the appointment is cancelled.
  • Please donate as much as you can afford. There is no set charge for using the Link, but we need donations to cover drivers’ cost of 45p/mile for fuel and wear and tear on their cars. See the table below for indicative costs of typical trips. Your driver will give you an envelope for your donation and will pass this on to the Link Treasurer. UK taxpayers can Gift Aid their donations.
  • You may be able to claim a refund of reasonable travel costs under the Healthcare Travel Costs scheme. Click here for more details.

We will make every effort to get you to your destination safely and on time, but . . .

  • Discharges from hospital need special advance arrangements. Let us know in good time.
  • We can’t carry wheelchairs. But if willing and able, our drivers can help with wheelchairs around the hospital.
  • If we’re collecting you after you’ve had a general anaesthetic, you must have another person with you.
  • If you’re under 16, you must have an adult with you.
  • If the surgery says that you need to go to hospital immediately, you should call an ambulance. We are not trained or equipped to provide an emergency service.
  • Trips outside our normal area (see table) need special approval. Co-ordinators will need permission from the management team before they can book them.

Delivery of prescriptions

If you live outside Mere, our volunteer drivers deliver prescriptions every Friday from the Mere and Silton surgeries. Please call the surgery to arrange this. The Mere chemist provides a similar service for Mere residents.

Here are some places that our volunteer drivers take our clients to, with the indicative costs to Link:

Bath hospitals44mi£19.80
Bournemouth Hospital72mi£32.40
Dorchester Hospital76mi£22.50
Fountains Way, Salisbury50mi£25.20
Gillingham (bank, doctor, audiologist, shopping)10mi£4.50
Mere (doctor, dentist, hairdresser, shopping)4mi£1.80
New Hall Hospital, Salisbury56mi£25.20
Salisbury District Hospital52mi£23.40
Shaftesbury (dentist, hospital, surgery)14mi£6.30
Silton Surgery8mi£3.60
Southampton Hospital100mi£45.00
Tisbury Surgery22mi£9.90
Warminster (hospital, dentist, opticians)22mi£9.90
Wincanton20mi£9.00