Fuel costs putting off meal delivery driver applicants
Maureen Bougeard says some prospective volunteers do not respond after learning about expenses.
Fuel costs deterring meal delivery driver applicants
The service delivers meals to about 100 people, four days a week
A meal delivery service supporting people in need has described the difficulties of attracting new volunteers as fuel prices continue to rise.
Maureen Bougeard said Meals on Wheels Jersey had received £38,000 from the Jersey Community Foundation to support the work of providing hot meals to islanders who are unable to prepare food for themselves.
She said the service packs and delivers meals to about 100 people, four days a week, but added that fuel costs were affecting operations.
"Very often volunteers say, you know, 'the petrol's getting expensive'," she said. "We're looking for new volunteers and I send the information out which says 'you drive your car at your own expense' and I don't hear from them again."
The secretary said the organisation had more than 200 volunteers.
"Our complete organisation is run by volunteers," Bougeard said. "We don't have any paid staff at all."
Bougeard said some of the volunteer meal delivery drivers drove the length of the island twice in a day, adding that most volunteers were retired people.
"I'm not saying everyone has a poor pension, not everyone is on the basic pension, but some are and they still manage to come and volunteer, which is absolutely fabulous," she said.
The service said people who receive the meals currently pay a cost price of £5.
It said the grant from Jersey Community Foundation covered the charge to the government of Jersey's health and community services, which supply and facilitate the preparation of the meals. The service said the grant had been offered for 2026 and 2027.
Meals on Wheels said it hoped to renegotiate the service level agreement with the government to allow it to continue.