Making cycling accessible to all

From 22-29 April, Cycling Scotland is taking part in The Big Give’s Earth Raise campaign, aimed at providing a funding boost to partners delivering activities to improve lives through increased access to bikes and opportunities to cycle.

Through The Big Give, funding raised towards our campaign target of £12,500 will be matched through selected trusts and foundations, with each individual donation having twice the impact.

Donations will support:

• Employment opportunities through bike maintenance training, redistributing up to 100 refurbished bikes back into the community for people who otherwise cannot afford a bike.
• Teaching up to 80 people to cycle safely and confidently.
• Ongoing activity delivered by St Paul’s Youth Forum, increasing access to bikes and bike maintenance skills in communities challenged by lack of access to essentials services and poor health outcomes.
• Our continued partnership work with organisations across the country, to provide additional accessible cycle training, to enable new life skills for adults and young people who have disabilities, additional support needs, or who experience difficulty accessing cycle training.

Our partnerships with a range of specialist organisations across Scotland are helping more people to access cycling and its many benefits – often for the very first time.

One recent initiative included working with Visibility Scotland, to develop specially tailored training to empower people living with reduced vision following a stroke, to stay active through cycling. Our ongoing partnership with St Paul’s Youth Forum is also supporting more people in the local community to gain access to a bike for the first time. Donations will contribute towards cycle training facilities, serving those struggling to access employment and providing a route to employment for nearby prison inmates post release, by developing bike repair and refurbishment skills.