Posted on: 13 November 2025
Brent Health Matters visited Metroline’s Cricklewood bus garage this week to offer health checks for drivers.
The event was part of Community Services Month – a chance to show how the NHS is delivering care in local neighbourhoods, not just in hospitals.
Brent Health Matters - a partnership between the NHS, Brent council and local charities – want to meet people where they are. Not everyone has time to visit a GP. Some aren’t even registered. So the team goes out to places most health services wouldn’t reach.
At Cricklewood, the team set up in the garage reception. Drivers came through steadily, often between shifts. There were stations for height and weight checks, blood pressure, glucose tests and nursing consultations. Clinical staff from Central London Community Healthcare NHS Trust were on hand. Stalls offered advice on mental wellbeing, musculoskeletal health and stop smoking. Results could even be shared directly with their GP.
For drivers, time off for appointments is hard to arrange. Shifts are fixed, holidays are set, and the timetable is strict.
Bobby, a Metroline driver for over four years, was one of the first to get checked:
“The team are really helpful. I don’t have time to take days off for appointments. This was quicker and easier.”
November is Community Services Month! We’re sharing stories from our communities to proudly show how the NHS is at the heart of local life - and the innovative ways we’re improving care by bringing it closer to home.