How a new electric van is helping Oxfordshire's over-50s to keep fit

“Compared to my old diesel estate… It’s like a new world!” says Carl Davis, the energetic founder of Living in Fitness, of his Citroën ë-Berlingo Van. Davis launched his business back in 2016, offering in-person and online fitness courses to the over-50s with a focus on those who may find the environment and cost of a gym overwhelming.

“My aim is to help members maintain their independence and quality of life through exercise. This means reducing frailty, helping them become stronger and fitter, and more connected, addressing loneliness and isolation.”

That is why Living in Fitness was identified as a social enterprise that would see huge benefits from the use of an ë-Berlingo Van courtesy of Big Issue and Citroën’s Driving Change for Good partnership, as well as additional business support and funding from Big Issue’s social investment arm, Big Issue Invest (BII). With Davis’s business and family growing rapidly, and previously only one vehicle in the household, Citroën’s ë-Berlingo Van has provided much-needed transport for his equipment, while freeing up his wife’s daily transport needs.

The ë-Berlingo Van is just one of the lineup of electric vehicles – both commercial and passenger cars – that Citroën offers, all majoring on great value and class-leading comfort.

“We’ve just had a second child, and we’ve got a young daughter who’s now at school,” says Davis. “The van has really transformed how I juggle family and work. Now I can do more classes, as well as bring more equipment to support the original classes that have now taken on more participants. Just in the last few weeks we’ve had another 10 people come along!

“I couldn’t support that without the van’s carrying capacity. It’s giving me the freedom of movement and the practicality that I need to expand the business, without compromising my family’s needs.”

 “It fits the ethos of my business and it’s cost effective. It’s worked so well, it just looks really professional”

And it’s not just about the sheer load capacity of the ë-Berlingo Van. Being an electric van tallies with his business’s aims as a social impact enterprise: “A lot of my clients have commented on the van being electric,” says Davis. “It helps to show that we’re conscious in all areas, including environmental concerns. It fits the ethos of my business, and it’s cost-effective. It’s worked so well. Being sign-written, too, it just looks really professional, so people are more confident that I’m a legitimate, fully established business. Loads of people have commented on it!”

Being Davis’s first experience of driving and living with an electric vehicle, there was a period of getting used to how to charge, and what range to expect in between having to plug in.

“I can’t get a dedicated home car charger because I rent my house, but I’ve got a cable for charging at our standard, outdoor three-pin socket, and it’s been such a good experience. It’s actually simpler than having to go to the petrol station! I just get home and plug the van in. It’s normally fully charged in about 12 to 13 hours. One full overnight charge will easily see me through two or three days of work.”

The Citroën ë-Berlingo Van has an official WLTP range of up to 213 miles from a full battery, but the real-world range on any electric vehicle varies depending on the weather and driving conditions. Davis received his ë-Berlingo in autumn last year, so has been running the van over the colder months when any EV’s potential range drops noticeably. Despite the elements being against it, the van is still covering all of Davis’s mileage needs for three days of use, which typically includes at least three half-hour trips each day – or around 150 miles per charge. We’ll have to wait and see how Davis manages as the weather warms up, but experience of our own fleet of Big Issue ë-Berlingo Vans used by our frontline delivery teams suggests that the range will roll up towards 200 miles in summer.

“I have had to rapid-charge occasionally, but in our area, there are quite a few public chargers, so finding one and getting plugged in hasn’t been a problem. And almost all of my charging is done at home, where it’s really cheap and convenient, so that’s been brilliant. I’ve saved a lot on fuel!”

It’s not just about the efficiency and practicality of the Citroën, though. The modern conveniences that the ë-Berlingo Van provides have also been a revelation: “The infotainment! Oh, my goodness,” laughs Davis. “I’ve never had a car with built-in navigation. It’s just great. I use the wireless Android Auto phone integration, which I also never used until I had the Citroën, and it’s so good having all your phone apps on the screen – all your maps and contacts. That’s been really helpful with staying connected while I’m driving, as I do a lot of journeys of around half an hour or so in between different locations. It’s so quiet, and the steering’s really light, so it just feels incredibly easy and smooth to drive. But that screen! It’s just great!”

In our catch-up, the convenience of this Citroën all-electric van is an aspect that Davis repeatedly comes back to, including the reversing camera and sensors, and even the windscreen wipers. “I really like the way the washer fluid comes out of the wiper arms, so it clears the windscreen really well…” he says, with another laugh, as if confessing a guilty secret. “I’ve never had that on a car before, but it works really well.”

Living in Fitness continues to go from strength to strength, supported by the ë-Berlingo Van’s modern features, cost-efficient running and versatility – all of which only helps to amplify Davis’s own impressive ambition and energy. With more classes starting to help cope with growing demand, and one of Living in Fitness’s existing members now starting to teach classes herself, the future is bright and the business continues to boost health and wellness in the Oxfordshire community.

Find out more at: citroen.co.uk/models/new-e-berlingo-van.html