Charity works nights for the NHS

Motorcyclist Rob Davies, from Tewkesbury, has a reasonably normal job during the day but a second duty that could keep him up all night.

He is a member of a group of volunteers who form the Severn Freewheelers, a charity organisation who provide a 7pm-7am motorcycle courier service for the NHS.

Called out for urgent or emergency cases, Severn Freewheelers collect and deliver items such as blood, samples, X-rays and MRI scans around the county and beyond.

They've done some calculations and we've saved Gloucestershire well over £40,000 in a year. Rob Davies, Chairman

"We've got around 75 people involved," said Rob. "Most of which are riders, some are dispatchers and some just like to help with fund-raising."

The charity has been operating for three years and have recently undertaken the 4,000th job for the NHS.

"We have three BMW bikes - one in Gloucestershire, one in Worcestershire and one in Wiltshire - and a spare Honda for when one of the BMW's breaks down," said Rob.

"Pretty much all of us have full-time jobs as well, that's why we work 7pm-7am as it gives people a chance to go to work when they're awake."

It costs around £30,000 a year to keep the charity afloat but Rob added that their service has enabled a huge saving for the NHS:

"Before we came along, the hospitals used to have to use taxis for these jobs. A taxi to Bristol is well over £100.

"They've done some calculations and we've saved Gloucestershire well over £40,000 in a year.

The charity provides a free out-of-hours courier service for hospitals

"Bearing in mind that we [also] operate in Herefordshire, Worcestershire and Wiltshire, overall we've saved the NHS significant amounts of money."

In previous years, the charity found it a lot easier to raise money through corporate sponsorship but "that pretty much dried up overnight", said Rob, following the credit crunch.

"A lot of our money now comes from groups like Rotary Clubs and the Round Table. We're always scratching around trying to find money from different sources."

When on call, Rob is busiest during the evening but his mobile will occasionally disturb the Davies' residence in the small hours of the night.

"On average you'll be away for about two hours," said Rob.

"If you come back at about 6.30am it's quite nice. You drive back and you see the sunrise, have some breakfast and go to work.

"The bad ones are when it happens at 3am and you get back at 5am so it's too early to have your breakfast but too late to get back to sleep, so you feel quite tired after those ones.

The role comes with a number of concerns for Rob's wife and their three young children, but overall she knows how strongly he feels about the role.

"It's not too bad when he's out in the evenings because I can choose what's on telly," said Nancy Davies.

"I don't particularly like it when he's out at night because I worry. In the winter he gets back into bed and he's very cold and expects to be cuddled warm!"