If you are over 60 and want to get more from your Freedom Pass, then Waterloo Action Centre's Happy Bus Pass Outings could be just the ticket. These trips depart from the centre on Baylis Road, just around the corner from Waterloo Station, at 11am every Monday and Wednesday.
Anyone can simply turn up on the day and the routes are planned to ensure they are free for anyone with a Freedom Pass. All the destinations are free too, so you don’t have to spend anything if you don’t want to.
To find out just how it all works we went along on a Happy Bus Pass Outing to Kenwood House (right), on Hampstead Heath in North London. The journey was simple enough: the Northern line took us to Golders Green, where we picked up a bus to Kenwood.
“I would never have come here on my own because, although I have been single since the 80s, I don’t have a good sense of direction and I wouldn’t have known how to get here,” laughs Barbara Potts, 62, from Vauxhall as she eats her packed lunch in the beautiful grounds.
“The outings are great as you are free to go on as many or as few as you like. There is no commitment, you can just turn up. There is usually a programme of outings for the next two months and you can just choose which ones you like the sound of,” Potts explains.
People join the outings for a whole host of different reasons, but everyone we spoke to was glad they had made the effort.
“I only seemed to use my Freedom Pass to go to the shops and back, and I wanted to do something more with it. My friend told me about the outings and how she’d been everywhere with her pass. This is my second outing so far and now I will be going on every one,” says Grace Besong, 65, from Brixton.
For others it’s more than just a nice day out. “The trips give you something to live for,” says Enid Sobers, 71, from Brixton Hill. While Anne Turner, 67, from Streatham describes them as a lifesaver.
“My husband died in 2004 and I spent two miserable and depressed years just sitting in my house on my own. Then I saw a leaflet about the outings and went along. They were a real lifesaver for me. Your problems multiply if you are stuck indoors alone, but since I started getting out and about I have become happier and healthier,” explains Turner.
Getting out and about clearly improves mental wellbeing, but for Bernadette, 72, from Lambeth Walk, the benefits have been physical too. “I was suffering with my legs and used to walk with a stick and my GP said I needed to do some exercise. I started going on the outings and because of this and the other activities I do at the centre my leg is much better now,” she explains as she explores the parkland around Kenwood.
Travelling together to destinations as varied as Eltham Palace, Greenwich Park, the RAF Museum in Hendon and Windsor Castle has built friendships and encouraged many people to venture out on their own too.
“Now I don’t have a problem taking myself out and about. The other day I went to Paddington Basin, walked along the canal and had a picnic. It was a lovely day,” says Nancy Arnott, 77, from Brixton Hill.
“If it weren’t for the outings I would be stuck indoors. They get you out and about, so you can meet people and have a talk. You can make new friends and see different places too,” says Bernadette.
If you like the idea of going on a Happy Bus Pass Outing, just turn up at Waterloo Action Centre, 14 Baylis Road, SE1 7AA at 11am on a Monday and Wednesday. If you can't come along but would like to be involved in the future leave a message for Jenny Stiles 0207 261 1404 or email jennystileswac@gmail.com.
Find out more about the Freedom Pass.
