25,000 More Children to Receive Cycle Training

Halfords and the Bikeability Trust partner to help more children to access cycle training

HALFORDS and the Bikeability Trust, the national charity for cycling training, today, Friday, 29 June, launched a partnership to help 25,000 more primary school age children in England access safe cycling programmes. The bid to help more children cycle more safely and more often was announced by Transport Minister Jesse Norman at the annual Cycle City Active City conference in Manchester. The partnership follows a YouGov report commissioned by Halfords which shows 56 per cent of parents want cycling safety added to the National Curriculum so that all children will be taught to cycle 'competently, confidently and proficiently' on the roads, amid fears that many are missing out on the chance to take up this fun and essential life skill.

The research also found that:

• 33 per cent of parents think there should be a special cycling highway code for children
• 60 per cent of parents support the proposition of more money being pledged towards cycling safety for children, even if it’s at the expense of other services
• 35 per cent of children learnt to cycle while at primary school
• 12 per cent of British families with kids under 12 have at least one family member who doesn’t know how to ride a bike

The partnership will help make sure families are cycle-ready as Halfords will provide free bike safety checks for every child taking part in a Bikeability programme, as well as for their parents, teachers and trainers. Bikeability already helps children to learn to cycle safely and will aim to engage more children and parents than ever, not only to become more confident cyclists but to help ingrain cycling into their everyday lives with a view to helping to prompt modal shift across the country.

The cycling training programme is based on the government’s National Standard for cycle and instructor training. It helps beginners to start learning in traffic-free environments before eventually developing their skills and confidence to progress on to local roads to tackling often busier, multi-lane roads and complex junctions.

Jesse Norman, Cycling Minister, said: “The benefits of cycling and walking are enormous. For people, it means cheaper travel and better health. For businesses, it means increased productivity and increased footfall in shops, and for society as a whole it means lower congestion, better air quality, and vibrant, attractive places. “Halfords’ investment in cycle training for children is a great boost for the delivery of the Bikeability programme. This investment in the future generation of cyclists, will allow us to reach and train more children than ever before.”

Graham Stapleton, CEO at Halfords said: “We are delighted to partner with the Bikeability Trust, and we are really proud to be able to help 25,000 more children to discover the joy of riding a bike. Safe cycling unlocks confidence and encourages daily activity. By helping more children cycle more safely and more often, families will be inspired to get out on their bikes.”

The Bikeability Trust’s Chief Executive, Paul Robison said: “Working with Halfords will give us the chance to extend our scope, to reach thousands more children and help raise awareness of cycling as an essential life skill.”

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• For further information please contact Halfords@z-pr.com
• For further information about the Bikeability Trust visit www.bikeabilitytrust.org  
• For further information about Bikeability cycle training – www.bikeability.org.uk

All research from Halfords/ YouGov survey, September 2017, based on a sample size of2,000