I'm not sure this can be done with a budget of under-£8000. To get eight or nine seats, will need to buy a van-based MPV but these vehicles are very popular with taxi companies and private hire firms and this means they are not cheap or plentiful on the used market.

Your best bet will probably be a Hyundai i800 with eight seats; however, with a budget of under-£8000, you will be looking at a vehicle that's 10+ years old with 100,000+ miles on the clock. And this will present you with a range of costly age-related wear and tear issues over the next three years.