Bikeability Scotland Awards 2025: Yvonne Scott

We caught up with Yvonne to ask her about her changing role and what her experience has taught her about delivering Bikeability in Orkney.

How do you feel about being recognised by the Bikeability Scotland community?

Absolutely fantastic. I was absolutely delighted and proud to be the recognised for this; for the Keith Fergus Annual Achievement Award. It is absolutely brilliant.

It actually comes at a very appropriate time because I'm retiring from my post at the end of this year as a road safety officer and with Orkney Island Council. It'll be short of 21 years working with Cycling Scotland. So, it's very apt.

How important is it to be recognised?

I think it is very important because you do your work and you just think that it's normal what you're doing, but maybe other places are not doing it.

Has your role changed over the 21 years?

It's changed quite a lot in one way, and another way it's not. Initially I was coordinating the delivery, when we go back to the Scottish Cycle Training Scheme, and it was the police officers who were delivering it in the schools.

Then when we went into cycle training with Bikeability, I became a cycle trainer so I could train the pupils. It was absolutely fantastic fun, exhausting, but really rewarding.

I was involved with the funding as well. I’d find out from the schools what was the need, what their wish list was, collate all that information and put in one bid for Orkney.

It's kind of been three-fold. It's been all the stats, the bids, and actually delivering cycle training. It's been great fun.

Tell us a little bit about Orkney and the challenges that are specific to the Islands?

Orkney is an archipelago, so we've got schools on different islands other than the Orkney mainland. These schools are smaller in size. Class sizes are smaller and there are composite classes. You have to be aware that you may not have a child in the correct age group for that delivery. Shetland and the Western Isles will have the same issues with that.

It is difficult because of the cost implications. If you've got a school on an island, you have to fit in with timetables of either flying or going on a ferry, which takes a lot of time out of your day. There's a lot of planning and organisation that goes into that.

Given the geographical challenges, how have you adapted and innovated?

What's unique about Orkney is that we can deliver our own training to our trainers. We don't have to rely on Cycling Scotland to come up to do that. That's a huge bonus for us.

Is there a moment when there was a change in how you delivered?

Since Covid we found that we delivered differently to how we did prior to Covid. We’re going more in intensive blocks. Once the children came back [after lockdown], they were out in the playground or they were on the roads cycling. And that was kind of a pivotal time of where Active Schools came on board. They had been involved [prior to Covid], but they were totally involved and immersed in it.

And are there any innovations that have helped you along the way?

Some kids don't have bikes but they would love to be involved. What we found worked better is rather than having pool bikes, that were circulating around the schools, that the pool bikes were located at the schools. Everybody wants to do it at the same time when there's a chance of good weather. That was crucial to the delivery and where we are now.

Can every pupil take part?

We did have a trainer in one of the schools, one of the rural schools, and he inquired about using an adapted bike. One of the pupils had additional needs but they wanted to take part in the cycling. They got a trike and that meant that pupil could join in and appreciate being involved and have fun cycling.

What is your favourite part of the role?

I love being involved with the kids in the school. I do different road safety initiatives in the schools and cycling is such a fun one. The kids love to cycle. They love to have that freedom. It's seeing them progress and being able to travel independently because it's a life skill. In life, as they go on from being a school pupil in Orkney to going off to university. They may want to travel actively so they might want to cycle. They've got that skill.

Is there something that sets it apart?

It's just seeing the kids grow their bike skills and grow in confidence so that they can make the right choices when they're using the roads. They're travelling along roads with other road users and they're growing in that confidence.

Confidence is a big thing for a young child. A P6 primary pupil being able to say, I'm holding my space on this road. I know. I've been trained. I can do this.

How does it feel to have achieved 100% delivery

Achieving 100% delivery on Level 2 was a massive and a very significant milestone because it’s knowing that the schools, the teachers, the parents, all value this Bikeability Scotland programme.

What advice would you give to others?

It is having that success with one or two schools and building on that success, showing and showcasing what happens. I think we've been so lucky with our Active Schools, and we have a local bike shop owner here that's very keen on cycling, and he's come on the journey with us and been delivering to schools. Having that enthusiasm from that trainer, to take that forward into the schools has been fundamental in getting to the place we are now.

It takes a long time because the schools have so many other programmes and different curriculum stuff that they have to do. That shows how important it is to Orkney schools that they are giving that time up for cycle training.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. A longer audio version is available.