CTC Cycle Champions
Swindon
Anna Cipullo is CTC’s Cycle Champions Development Officer in Swindon, working in partnership with CTC charitable Trust, Swindon Borough Council and the Leisure Services team.
Swindon contains multiple areas of severe deprivation, and local physical activity levels are lower than the national average - less than a fifth of individuals are reported to carry out regular exercise. It is a challenging locality for projects of this kind.
The Swindon project targets community members who are unlikely to cycle without encouragement and assistance, and would benefit the most from increased daily physical activity. These include the disabled, those aged 60 and above, women, ethnic minorities, lower-income groups, and those with mental health difficulties.
Anna is working hard to overcome the barriers preventing Swindonians from cycling; by collaborating with community-focused organisations, she is setting up cycling skills groups, in an attempt to get people pedalling regularly and enjoy the consequent benefits.
Up ‘n’ Cycling is one such group that consists of skills training courses for lapsed, unconfident and novice cyclists. An experienced, local Bike Ability instructor delivers weekly one-hour sessions over a six-week period for up to ten individuals. The sessions occur on an athletics track; it is a safe, traffic free zone, enabling participants to receive plenty of individual attention and steadily gain confidence.
Sensational Cycling at Crowdys Hill School is implementing Bike Ability cycle skills training and road safety awareness training to young people with Special Educational Needs (SEN). The scheme has now trained over 70 students who are aiming to take over the training role themselves, ensuring the long-term sustainability of the project for the next four years and beyond. Crowdys Hill School will also incorporate cycle skills training into the school’s PE Curriculum. The Sensation Cycling scheme will continue to expand to other SEN schools in the area.
The Swindon Workplace Cycle Challenge aimed to encourage inexperienced or unconfident cyclists to cycle to work, or simply hop on a bike for a period of time to enjoy themselves. The challenge was a great success - 39 organisations and 850 people took part, 142 of which hadn’t ridden a bike in more than a year. Giving people a short, positive cycling experience is a great first step towards changing people's perceptions and encouraging cycling habits again. The Challenge also encouraged those people who are currently cycling recreationally to give cycling to work a go.
Watch two videos about the new initiative between Swindon Borough Council's Leisure Services and the project bringing the independence of cycling to adults with varying disabilities from across Swindon here.
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Up ‘n’ Cycling
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External link: CTC website
External link: CTC Cycle Champions project pages
