A charity bus service which has transformed the lives of elderly and disabled people in Mid Sussex may have to be axed because of lack of funding.

Bluebird Community Transport provides a door-to-door minibus service for anyone who has difficulty getting around, whether from old age or a physical disability, for as little as 70p a ride.

Based in Burgess Hill, people can telephone the charity 24 hours in advance and a driver will pick them up from their homes to take them shopping, to the doctors, or simply to visit friends.

Originally set up by volunteers in the mid Eighties and run from a bedroom in Lindfield, Bluebird started out with just one car to ferry people about.

The non-profit scheme expanded in January 2000 after joining forces with a Burgess Hill project.

The scheme now has three minibuses serving people throughout Mid Sussex.

The minibuses provide more than 2,000 passenger journeys a month.

But, three years on, the original start-up grant has run out and despite writing to every council and business in the area, the charity has found no way to raise the £90,000 it needs to keep going.

Without the service, many handicapped and elderly people, often in villages with limited transport, will find themselves housebound.

Winnie Holman, 81, from Hassocks, relies on Bluebird minibuses to take her to the shops and visit friends.

She said: "My life honestly wouldn't be worth living without Bluebird. I just couldn't survive.

"My husband died three years ago and I live on my own so I'd be stranded.

"There isn't another service like Bluebird. The drivers aren't just drivers, they're carers."

Bluebird manager Paul Hayes said: "I've written to every parish, borough, town and district council and to every factory, business and industry in Haywards Heath and Burgess Hill.

"We've received a cheque for £200 from one company but we need £90,000 a year.

"Overall, it costs about £130,000 and we can cover about £40,000 with fares.

"In an ideal world the service would be free but that's not possible.

"It's not as though there isn't demand - we're having to turn people away.

"We would love to expand and plan for the future but without a grant we've no security.

"The problem is there are lots of start-up grants but nothing to keep volunteer companies going."

Bluebird chairman Anne Jones is also a Mid Sussex District councillor.

She said: "The Government expects vital services to be run by the volunteer sector but won't help finance it.

"This is a fantastic service and provides a better quality of life and independence for so many people.

"Without it, a lot of people will be housebound or end up in nursing homes, which will cost the Government an awful lot more."