Community transport: Funding extended until end of June

About 40% of people in Northern Ireland live in rural areas and many rely on community transport to allow them to leave their homes

Funding for local community transport providers has been extended until the end of June.

Eleven organisations across Northern Ireland deliver the dial-a-lift service through Rural Community Transport Partnerships (RCTP).

Funding from the Department for Infrastructure (DfI) was due to run out at the end of April.

DfI told providers that in absence of a Stormont budget, Permanent Secretary Julie Harrison authorised the move.

In a letter seen by the BBC, a DfI spokesperson said: "In confirming funding for April, the Department had expected that a budget for 2023-24 would have been confirmed by 31 March 2023 but unfortunately this has not happened.

"We fully acknowledge the difficulties presented to the community transport providers by the current budget uncertainty, but the department fully recognises all the efforts by community transport to continue to provide services and remains committed to working with the RCTPs to address the situation we all find ourselves in.

"It is expected that funding decisions for the remainder of the year will be subject to the budget provided by the secretary of state for NI in the event that we remain without ministers."

The service was at risk of closure without the funding.

The dial-a-lift service makes about 200,000 journeys a year, taking vulnerable passengers to healthcare appointments and food shopping.

It has previously received government funding of £2.2m each year.

About 40% of people in Northern Ireland live in rural areas and many rely on community transport to allow them to leave their homes because of a lack of public transport nearby.

Following Thursday's announcement, Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) infrastructure spokesman Phillip Brett welcomed the funding extension.

"We will continue to support and work alongside the sector to find a sustainable long-term solution beyond this current extension, that protects the vital services they provide," he said.

Sinn Féin assembly member Cathy Mason said she remained "deeply concerned about the future of these vital services".

A number of other voluntary organisations are at risk of losing funding back of 'budget uncertainty'

In recent months community transport organisations have also been affected by rising fuel costs.

The Community Transport Association is calling for the service to be fully funded and ring-fenced against future cuts.

Stormont's departments have been operating without proper budgets since the start of the financial year last April due to the collapse of the executive.

In a statement, DfI said it understood the impact that closing the bus service would have on the workforce and users.

"To minimise uncertainty and operational difficulties, a funding commitment was given to community transport providers for April 2023," it explained.

The spokesperson continued: "Given the continuing uncertainty arising from the absence of a budget allocation, community transport providers have been notified that their funding has now been extended to 30 June 2023.

BBC News NI previously reported that public services provided by Stormont departments face cuts of at least £500m in the new financial year.

It is understood that a number of other voluntary organisations funded by DfI are also at risk of losing funding.

The department said further funding decisions will be "dependant on the departmental budget allocation, which has yet to be confirmed".