A LIFELINE minibus service for York residents has been shortlisted for a national award.

York Wheels - a voluntary organisation providing community transport - has been nominated for The Guardian Charity Awards 2007.

Last year, York Wheels undertook 30,128 journeys providing door to door transport.

The charity takes people to the shops, cinema, bingo, the coast, the hospital or dentist as well as many more other social events.

The judges will look through all of the applications and assess each in turn, finally deciding upon the five winners.

Each of the five charities will then be invited to an awards ceremony in London in December where they will be presented with their prize money and a computer donated by Smartchange.

Coun Ruth Potter, chairwoman of Trustees at York Wheels said: "This is a great achievement. The awards are designed to recognise and celebrate the importance of small charities for their contribution to social welfare in the community.

"As part of the application I submitted for the award, I focused on the number of journeys that York Wheels undertakes each year and the contribution this makes to social inclusion by helping elderly people to remain independent in their own homes. I am very proud of everyone involved with York Wheels, our volunteers do a wonderful job.

"I am keeping my fingers crossed for them and hope that we will be one of the five winners."

There were almost 600 entries competition entries altogether.

The shortlist will be presented to the panel of judges this week.

The panel includes Jane Asher, president of The National Autistic Society.

David Brindle, public services editor, the Guardian, will chair the judging.

Last week, The Press reported that the charity was presented with a ten-seater minibus to ferry cancer patients daily between York Hospital and Cookridge Hospital, in Leeds, which is where dozens of York patients are sent for radiotherapy and chemotherapy treatment.

York Against Cancer's fundraising campaign has just passed the £100,000 milestone - enough to buy the minibus and run it for one year.

The bus was officially handed over to Mike Perry, of York Wheels, during an open day for the charity.