Bikeability Update

The latest news on Bikeability appears below including details of a new contract for the central administration of the scheme.

 

Bikeability Pilot

In September 2006 Cycling England launched Bikeability, (the new cycling proficiency for the 21st Century) as the Award Scheme for cyclists trained to the National Cycle Training Standard.  The Bikeability badge will be a worthy successor to the old cycling proficiency scheme, updated for today’s world.

 

The launch marked the start of the gearing-up phase involving more than 5,000 children across eight regions; Merseyside, Exeter, Essex, Cornwall, Isle of Wight, London Borough of Kingston, Manchester and Hertfordshire. During this period nearly 10,000 badges were awarded.

 

The media coverage of September’s announcement was considerable, including Newsnight, ITV Granada and Newsround; articles in the Sun, Daily Express and Guardian. Regional radio stations and newspapers also covered the story. Given this level of media support for the initial phase, the national launch announcement will create even more publicity for the Bikeability scheme.

 

The most important aspect of the gearing up phase was to gather information in order to enable a smooth and successful national roll-out. Extensive in-depth interviews were undertaken with children, parents, teachers, scheme organisers, providers and instructors. From this research, materials and the method of their distribution were further improved; and the research indicated that:

 

• 83% of training organisers and instructors saw an increase in the number of children cycling to school;
• 67% of children were cycling more after taking part;
• 71% of teachers had more confidence in children cycling on roads post Bikeability training;
• 60% of parents felt more confident with their children cycling on the roads
• All of the teachers and parents surveyed agreed that Bikeability training is necessary for today’s children.

Read the full Gearing Up Report.

 

Bikeability - The National Roll-Out

The start of the National Roll-Out of Bikeability across England will take place from April 2007 onwards. 

All providers of cycle training, from Local authorities to independent trainers, will be able to participate in the Bikeability award scheme.  Bikeability will be a mark of quality and commitment to teaching an important life-skill, and will become a nationally recognised scheme.

To give out Bikeability badges and certificates to your trained cyclists, you must first ensure that:

 

• your training scheme meets the National Cycle Training Standard

and

• your instructors have been trained and accredited to this Standard

 

This is quite straightforward, and is explained in the following paragraphs.

 

Bikeability - Accreditation

To ensure that schemes awarding Bikeability badges are of a consistent and high quality, the Department for Transport and Cycling England have worked with the Cycle Training Standards Board to manage a simple checklist process.  This will register and formally accredit each scheme.

 

This process has been designed so that those already delivering national standard cycle training will be able to provide easily the documentation required, demonstrating that they deliver high quality cycle training. 

 

 

Read the full details of the Provisional Bikeability Accreditation.

 

NOTE:

 

If you are unsure whether your scheme already meets the National Standard, or do not have a National Standard cycle training provision at all, there is a “ready made” course and step-by-step guide available free of charge.  It can be downloaded from www.bikeability.org.uk from April 2007.  It explains both how to train to the National Standard and what is required by way of standard documentation so that you can deliver the Bikeability award scheme.

 

Bikeability - £1 million of grants

From April 2007, Cycling England will also be making available to local authorities a £1 million fund for child cycle training.  

Grants will be made to those authorities who deliver national standard cycle training (and in particular to those authorities wishing to participate in the Bikeability award scheme) and demonstrate that the grant will pay for cycle training in addition to that which they already undertake.  Collaborative and / or large-scale bids will receive priority.

 

Local Authorities wishing to receive grants for cycle training in time for the start of the Summer Term must submit their application form by MARCH 16.  This will enable the distribution of grants to be completed in mid April.

 

The application form for a cycle training grant is available in pdf format and in word format.

Further information about the grants is given in Section 9 of the Application Form.

 

Bikeability - the Award package

The Bikeability Award package comprises:

 

• Badges – one each for Level 1, Level 2 and Level 3
• Booklets – with relevant information appropriate to each level; one for each Level
• Folders – the Level 1 folder contains the badge and booklet for Level 1, and has spaces for the other two levels as completed.
• Certificates – as appropriate for each level

 

The badges are of high quality metal, with luminous enamel paint colours for each level; the booklets and certificates are full colour with photographs.

 

Once your Bikeability Accreditation form has been processed, your training scheme/instructors will receive a unique identifying code number.  This will enable you to indent for supplies of the Award package to be delivered by post to your nominated address.  The packs will be mailed in quantities of 50 or 100, and the total package cost (which will be under £3 per pack) should either be covered within the total cycle training charge or, if necessary, passed on separately to the trainees’ parents.   Full details will be published shortly.

 

Further help

For help filling out the provisional Bikeability accreditation form please contact who are managing the process on behalf of the Cycle Training Standards Board.

 

Bursaries are still available to help you train additional national standard instructors.  Please contact 0870 607 0415 or visit www.ctc.org.uk/cycletraining

 

For help and advice about the National Cycle Training Standards please contact the National Cycle Training Helpline on 0870 607 0415 or visit www.ctc.org.uk/cycletraining

 

  Bikeability Scheme

 

An exciting opportunity now exists to tender for the contract to administer Bikeability, the brand new national award scheme for cycle training and the ‘cycling proficiency for the 21st century’.  The contract has been advertised in the Official Journal of the European Union by the Department for Transport. 

 

Full details of the contract notice can be found here.