Bike ItProject Review 2010

Giving children the skills andconfidence to travel by bike

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Once again, Sustrans had aphenomenally successful yearincreasing the levels of childrencycling to school. As you will readinside, the number of childrencycling to Sustrans’ Bike It schoolshas doubled, with one in four pupilscycling to school at least once everyweek and one in ten pupils cyclingevery day. At Bike It schools, levelsof car use on the school journeyhave fallen by one quarter. Thesefigures are in stark comparison tothe fact that just 2% of children inthe UK usually cycle to school, eventhough half of them would like to.

In March 2010, Sustrans published itscall to action, More Haste, Less Speed,which includes giving every child andyoung person the knowledge, skills andconfidence to establish the habit oftravel by foot and bike early in life. Wehave called for a doubling in theproportion of local journeys made onfoot, by bicycle and on public transportfrom two out of five to four out of five.Bike It shows that this scale of changeis possible when supported withadequate investment and progressivejoined-up thinking.

What is more, and this is critical at atime when government budgets arebeing squeezed so hard, Sustrans’Bike It offers fantastic value for money.We know that children who cycle toschool are much more likely to bephysically active than their peers –reducing the chance of childrenbecoming obese and developingdiabetes. We know that Bike It reducestraffic congestion and offers a cheaper

ForewordfromSustrans

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alternative to expensive school transport incertain areas. And by promoting safecycling, Bike It can reduce the risk ofaccidental injury. One thousand Bike Itofficers, working with 12,000 schools eachyear would cost, just £1 per year for everyUK resident.

Sustrans has always focused its efforts ondelivering practical projects and persuadinglocal communities to take actionthemselves. We strive to coordinateinvestment in cycling and walkinginfrastructure with all our behaviour changeprojects, including Bike It. Our work inLuton, featured on page 14, is an excellentexample of what can be achieved whenthese projects come together.

Year after year, surveys show that ourfunding partners are delighted with theenthusiasm and professionalism ofSustrans staff. This year’s LondonTransport Awards gave the accolade of‘Best Cycling Improvement’ to the Bike Itproject in the London Borough of TowerHamlets. I would like to congratulateJames Scott of Sustrans and SamMargolis from the London Borough ofTower Hamlets on their bold partnership inwhat must be one of the most challenginglocations in which to promote cycling toschool. Their achievements, and those ofevery Bike It officer, are only possible withthe fantastic support they receive fromteachers, parents, cycle trainers and localbike shops. We are enormously grateful tothem and to our funders.

I hope you agree that this review makescompelling reading, and if you don’tcurrently have a Bike It officer working inyour area, please do get in touch with me.

Malcolm ShepherdChief Executive, Sustrans

Sustrans+If you like the sound of what’s inthis review and you want to getBike It up and running in your area,turn to page 18 for details of whereto start, or simply drop us a line atschools@sustrans.org.uk

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Our partners

I just wanted to thank you forteaching my son to ride a bike, I tried,but I was hopeless. Before you had tocrowbar him away from the computer,but now there’s no stopping him whenit comes to his bike, and you can'timagine how proud I am when he saysthat cycling is now his hobby.

Dave Sims, parent at Sundon ParkJuniors, Luton

The parent

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Sustrans has been crucial indeveloping and sustaining cycling inour school, helping to reduce carjourneys and congestion during theschool run. With the help of our BikeIt officer cycling has become avalued and enjoyable element of ourschool curriculum.

Mark Welch, Headteacher, Warden Hill Junior School, Luton

The school

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“Sustrans’ work is a valuable

addition to the Council’s existingRoad Safety programme.Increasing levels of cycling in thecity, particularly for schools, isone of the main aims of ourSustainable Travel City projectand Bike It is central to helping usto achieve this.

Cheryl Owen, Travel PlanningOfficer at Cardiff Council

The localauthority

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The bicycleindustry

This morning was truly uplifting.Both the Headteacher and DeputyHeadteacher expressed how fantasticthey thought Bike It was during theassembly. I am now seeing real evidenceon the ground of children regularlycycling to school on the Isle of Dogs.Our aim of more children regularlycycling to school in order to boost theirhealth is well on the way to being met.

Sam Margolis, Joint Active TravelOfficer, London Borough of TowerHamlets and NHS Tower Hamlets

The Bicycle Association has quitea few things to be proud of, butundoubtedly the most rewarding is to seethe effect that the voluntary donations toour Bike Hub Fund have had upon theburgeoning success of Bike It. ‘Fromsmall acorns, mighty oak trees grow’ andthis is not just true of the success thatBike It is having upon cycling’s increasein schools right now, but also the longterm personal and societal benefits thatcycling brings with it.

Philip Taylor, President of the BicycleAssociation

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The local healthpartnership

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Sustrans works directly with schools who wantto increase levels of cycling. We do this byhelping schools to make the case for cycling intheir school travel plans, supporting cyclingchampions in schools and demonstrating thatcycling is a popular choice amongst childrenand their parents. Our aim is to create a cyclingculture in the school which continues long afterthe Bike It officer has left.

What is Bike It?

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The project also adds to local investment in cycleroutes, bike sheds and cycle training by involvingpupils, teachers and parents and enabling themto take the small steps which are necessary tomake a real difference.

Bike It officers work with schools by:• explaining the benefits of cycling• contributing to classroom work• addressing concerns about safety and

liability with the help of the local authority and other partners

• sharing good practice with schoolmanagement teams

• organising practical cycling activities• generating positive publicity.

Where possible, we work with clusters ofenthusiastic schools in areas which areparticularly suited to cycling and where we canlink the efforts of secondary schools and theirfeeder primary schools. Each Bike It officer works with at least 12 schools over the course ofan academic year. Some schools keep Bike It fora second year if they are not quite ready to go italone or still have the potential to increase cyclinglevels further.

Sustrans’ Bike It officers meet regularly to shareideas and swap skills so that whilst each of themplays to their own strengths when working withschools, they all benefit from the collectiveexperience of the wider team. As part of thewider Sustrans team, Bike It officers also benefitfrom Sustrans’ long experience of delivering awide range of successful projects to increaselevels of walking and cycling both to school andother everyday destinations.

In combination, this helps keep the Sustrans BikeIt message fresh, engaging and relevant to youngpeople. In addition we provide staff with fulltraining in first aid, risk assessment, cycle safetyinstruction, outdoor activities and child protection.

What did you do before joiningSustrans?I worked for 20 years for a largemanufacturing company as the logisticsdepartment manager and later as thehealth and safety officer. I have alsobeen a school governor and helped runa children’s cycling club for many years.

What do you enjoy about the job?Helping children and parents make apositive change which enriches theirlives. It sounds grand but it is in factvery simple. In addition to all the healthand environmental benefits, cycling isfundamentally liberating, empoweringand fun.

Who are you working with?My main partner is the CyclingSouthend team at the Borough Council.I also work with the Healthy SchoolsAdvisor and local bike shops. CapitalShopping Centres have sponsored ascheme across the Thames Gatewayaimed at increasing the uptake ofBikeability training in Bike It schools.

What has been your most successfulactivity?A summer incentive scheme whichinvolved assemblies and classroomsessions leading to prizes. The bikesheds overflowed and in some schoolsover a third of pupils cycled in. Iclocked up a lot of bike miles deliveringadditional stocks of prizes, which gaveme lots of unexpected opportunities tomeet pupils and their parents.

Best moment so far?A girl aged about nine who arrived onher bike with stabilisers. She usuallycomes to school with her mum in awheel chair because she can’t walk allthe way from home. She was unfazedby the whole thing but her mum andclassmates were bursting with pride.That’s the power our project has toinspire and motivate.

Graham Pearl isSustrans’ Bike It officerin Southend

Sustrans works closely with schools, parents,local authorities, bike shops and funders todeliver Bike It. But there are many otherorganisations that play their part and Sustrans’Bike It officers frequently coordinate much ofthis work within the school.

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Who do wework with?

A BMX display team givespupils a treat at Staple Hill

Primary in Bristol.

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Bike It meets two of the five aims of EveryChild Matters: staying safe and beinghealthy.

Our principal contacts in schools are ourSchool Champions who help us co-ordinate daily activities and circulate publicitymaterial to other staff and parents. Thesechampions are often teachers who are keencyclists themselves but we also work withstaff taking a lead on school sports,healthy schools and sustainable schoolsactivities. As pressure comes to bear onschool transport budgets, cycling isbecoming an important transport option forstudents making longer journeys of up tofive miles. Several Bike It staff now workwith staff in secondary schools who areresponsible for coordinating 14-19 Agendaand Diploma programmes.

Local authorities benefit from Sustrans’school cycling work in many ways. Asschools develop their cycle to schoolpolicies, we ensure that they update targetsin their School Travel Plans. Progressionthrough our School Mark accreditationscheme is linked to evidence of markedincreases in cycling, thereby deliveringoutcomes for School Travel Advisors andHealthy Schools officers. Bike It staff alsowork closely with road safety teams andprivate training providers to promote take upof Bikeability (accredited on-road cycletraining). We have also attracted additionalfunding from government, the Big LotteryFund and the private sector for new cyclestorage and improved walking andcycling routes. The Luton case study onpage 14 is a good example of how Bike Itsupports investment in new cyclinginfrastructure.

All but two of the 18 Cycling DemonstrationTowns and City have Bike It staff in place.Marketing and communications teamsbenefit from their practical expertise,personal contacts and positive local mediastories. Recently published research fromfive of the original six Cycling DemonstrationTowns has shown that there has been a126% increase in regular cycling levels atSustrans’ Bike It schools.

The cycle industry has funded Bike It sinceits inception and we continue to workclosely with local cycle retailers. Withouttheir contribution to the Bike Hub fund, BikeIt would probably not exist. Members of theBicycle Association and the Associationof Cycle Traders have provided prizes, runDr Bike sessions in schools, and publicisedlocal Bike It projects to their customers.

As a charity, Sustrans is well placed to workwith commercial partners. Two examples ofsuccessful partnerships are with Lushwhose staff have helped deliver Beauty andthe Bike sessions with girls; and CapitalShopping Centres who have supportedBike It projects close to the MetroCentre inGateshead and Lakeside in Thurrock.

Sustrans+Want to hook up with your localBike It officer? We promise it’ll bethe start of a beautiful relationship.Drop us a line and we’ll put you intouch: schools@sustrans.org.uk

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Bike It works

of children told usthat they now cycleto school everyday, compared to3% before Bike It.

10%of children told usthat they now cycleto school at leastonce a week,compared to 13%before Bike It.

26%

Calculating the benefits

In the school year 2008/09, Sustrans conducted hands-up surveys of

pupils at schools where Bike It was being introduced for the first time.

In total, Sustrans surveyed around 20,000 pupils at 114 Primary and

nine Secondary schools in England (excluding schools surveyed in

London and in Wales). Before the project began, Sustrans asked the

pupils how often they cycled, walked or were driven to school and how

they would prefer to travel to school. Sustrans then asked the same

questions after Bike It had been delivered. Regular bike shed counts

were also conducted throughout the academic year. For more

information about Sustrans’ Bike It surveys please refer to the Bike It

Technical Report: www.sustrans.org.uk/bikeit

of children atBike It schoolstold us that theywanted to cycleto school.

50%

In LondonResults have echoed trends seen inEngland and Wales. The share ofpupils cycling every day increasedfrom 4% to 8% whilst the proportioncycling at least once a week grewfrom 12% to 22%.

In WalesThe proportion of regularcyclists increased from13% to 39% and pupilscoming by car everydayfell from 38% to 34%.

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The percentage ofchildren that told usthat they never cycleto school droppedfrom 73% to

56%after Bike It.

of headteachersfelt that Bike It had helped pupilsbecome morephysically active.

94%

Never Once or twiceeach term

Once ortwice a week

Every day

% o

f p

upils

Source: Sustrans, 2009Note: Data based on hands-up surveys of around 20,000 pupils,

asking the question “Do you cycle to school?”

Increase in frequency of children cyclingto school at Bike It schools: 2008-09

Before Bike ItAfter Bike It

73

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Once ortwice each

year

56

310 10

168 12

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of children told usthat they come toschool by carevery day,compared to 29%before Bike It.

22%

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Don’t just take our word for it

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Headteachers

Headteachers (and their nominated schoolchampions) have given Sustrans aresounding thumbs-up after we asked themabout the impact of Bike It. Of the 146schools that responded:

• 71% said that the number of childrenbeing driven by car had reduced sinceSustrans had started working with theirschool

• 99% felt that cycling levels had increased• 94% felt that Bike It had helped pupils

become more physically active• 74% said Bike It had helped improve

school travel plan quality and delivery• 59% believed that Bike It had helped

increase engagement with parents• When asked if they would recommend

Bike It to other schools, 99% said ‘Yes’• The most important factors for increasing

cycling were listed as cycle storage,promotional events, cycle training andinformation and advice from Bike It staff.Bike rides, parents’ involvement, safetyimprovements and local authorityinformation were rated less important.

Local funders

Feedback from local authorities and primarycare trusts has been extremely positive withparticular praise for the way in whichSustrans’ staff have inspired higher cyclinglevels amongst children; helped providepopular events and activities for the localcommunity; given council officers moreconfidence to promote cycling to school;generated good publicity for the council’swork; and established local examples ofgood practice.

The comments below were returnedanonomously from local authorities andprimary care trusts:

Bike It has a played a huge role indeveloping a new culture of cycling in

the local authority. Some of the old mythsabout cycling have been broken down andcycling is now becoming the norm.

Our Bike It officer is an absolutedynamo. Ever enthusiastic, she

describes her role as “the best job in theworld”. It is clear that the programme is aunifying, motivating force in schools thelike of which few other initiativescome close.

Government

In its Carbon Management Strategy forthe School Sector, the Department forChildren, Schools and Families has setschools the target of reducing travelemission levels by 34% based on 2008levels, with particular emphasis on morewalking and cycling. What’s more, in his2010 annual report, the Chief MedicalOfficer, Professor Sir Liam Donaldson, hascalled for an eight-fold increase in cycling.His ambition is backed up by the recentlypublished Active Travel Strategy whichcalls on local partnerships to make walkingand cycling the preferred means of travel forthe 21st Century.

Successful approaches will entailtaking part in national and local

programmes… for example Sustrans’ Bike Itprogramme has worked directly with over700 schools, improving children’s skills andconfidence and doubling levels of cycling. A Carbon Management Strategy for the School Sector, Dept for Children,Schools and Families

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Children from Warden Hill Juniors and Icknield High School met up on a bike rideto celebrate the opening of a new link, created as part of Sustrans’ programme ofwork to link schools to their local communities and the National Cycle Network.

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Warden Hill Junior School,Luton

When Bike It officer Richard Noonstarted working with Warden HillJunior School in Luton in September2008 there was no cycle storage andnone of the pupils cycled to school.Bikes were simply toys, most of themparked up in the garage or gardenshed. Eighteen months on, the schoolhas a brand new cycle shelter and fiftypupils cycle to school on a regularbasis.

Headteacher Mark Welch explainswhy the school signed up to Bike It;“Warden Hill Junior School was keento become involved with Sustrans tohelp our children become safe andconfident young cyclists as well asdeveloping independence,environmental awareness and health

related skills. Cycling has helpedsupport all these, and other, importantareas of personal development.”

Since then, three teachers havebecome cycling champions and helpRichard to run events at the school.One of them has been trained byBritish Cycling to help deliver Go Rideskills sessions and the school offersBikeability cycle training to all Year 5and 6 children through Luton BoroughCouncil. Once additional cycleparking is completed as part of itsbuilding programme, the school plansto promote cycling to younger pupilswith the cycling equivalent of thewalking bus. The school is one of thefirst to reach bronze level of Sustrans’School Mark scheme which aims tosustain progress once Bike It officersmove on.

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Bike It in Belfast

In her first year of Bike It, Jill McDonaldhas worked with over 3,000 children. Thefirst year of Sustrans’ work in Belfast waswholly funded by the cycle industry’s BikeHub fund and, like all Bike It officers, Jillhas drawn on the support of local biketraders. Bikedock has offered discounts tofamilies at Bike It schools and donatedstaff time to support Jill with some of her ‘Ilove my bike’ activities. Many of Jill’sschools are in deprived areas and here thefocus is often on repairing bikes andteaching bike maintenance skills. Forexample, over 900 young people havelearned how to fix a puncture. As Jillexplains, “The commercial benefits aren’tovert, but those dealers who get it, cansee the bigger picture...It’s great to seethe bike shop staff getting stuck in. Thekids appreciate it too.”

Warden Hill also has a new link to theNational Cycle Network which passesthrough the town centre, and Sustrans’Active Travel project is providingtraining and refurbished bicycles tothose most in need. Sustrans is alsoworking with the local secondaryschool Icknield High to providecontinuity for the cyclists of Warden HillJuniors. In time, we hope to work withlocal residents to reclaim some of theirstreets as play space and improve safeaccess to local children’s centres andplay areas.

The upward trend in cycling at WardenHill Junior School has been repeated atother Bike It schools in Luton, wherelevels of regular cycling have more thandoubled over the past three years. It’stherefore no coincidence that usage ofthe National Cycle Network in the areahas doubled in just five years.

St James’ Whiteabbey School, Belfast

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In 2010 Sustrans willwork with schools inthe following locations.

Where next?

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Funding from the Department forTransport (via Cycling England), thecycle industry (via the Bike Hub fund),the Big Lottery Fund, Welsh AssemblyGovernment and Transport for Londonenabled us to expand our Bike It teamand bring a positive cycling experienceto 130,000 children. Most encouraging,has been the growth in partnershipfunding between local authorities andprimary care trusts – Cornwall,Northumberland, Dorset andWestminster being the most recentexamples. These partners recogniseSustrans as a charity that deliverspositive outcomes for local transportplans, school travel and physicalactivity strategies.

In Scotland, Bike Hub funding has allowedus to pilot a programme called I Bike. Theproject is currently being delivered inEdinburgh and Perth. Two dedicated cyclingofficers have begun working intensively withsecondary schools and their feeder primaryschools, in partnership with their localauthorities.

I Bike aims to tackle decreasing levels ofcycling as pupils move from primary tosecondary school. Girls too are a key focusfor I Bike and we hope this work willencourage more girls to take to two wheels.

Looking forward, Sustrans has called for adoubling in the proportion of local journeysmade on foot, by bicycle and on publictransport by 2020 – bringing us into linewith many of our continental neighbours.To do this we must give every child andyoung person the knowledge, skills andconfidence to establish the habit of travelby foot and bike early in life. Sustrans’Bike It project is a proven means ofhelping to make it happen.

In March 2010, we offered all Bike Itschools the chance to race each other ina nationwide Virtual Bike Race. The racewas a huge success – 264 Bike It schoolstook part in the four week race, with anaverage of one in eight of their pupilscycling to school each day. The net resultof all this was nearly 288,000 schoolcycling journeys.

Sustrans+To find out exactly where Bike It isworking right now visit theSustrans website:www.sustrans.org.uk/bikeit

Sustaining the resultsWe launched the Sustrans School Markscheme in September 2009. By workingtowards structured Bronze, Silver andGold awards, this support frameworkhelps ensure project outcomes continuelong after a school’s Bike It officer moves

on. Each school is asked toreview the activities whichpromote sustainable traveland demonstrate anongoing increase in cycling.By May 2010, around 500 schools hadsigned up for the scheme and over 100schools had achieved the Bronze award.

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Make your moveIf you like the sound of Sustrans’ Bike It and think that schools in your areacould benefit please get in touch with Sustrans:

Register your interest at www.sustrans.org.uk/askforbikeitWrite to: Sustrans School Travel, Sustrans, 2 Cathedral Square, Bristol BS1 5DDCall Sustrans School Travel on 0117 915 0100

SchoolsIf you would like a Bike It officer to work withyour school then visitwww.sustrans.org.uk/askforbikeit andcomplete the on-line survey. It’s only byregistering your interest that we can make thecase for more funding. Encourage your localauthority school travel adviser to approachSustrans and register their interest too. Bike Itcan help organise Bikeability cycle training atyour school. To find out about Bikeability visit:www.bikeability.org.uk

Parents, teachers or school governorsIf you would like Bike It to work with your child’sschool then contact a member of staff at theschool and ask them to complete the surveylisted above. If you would like to become achampion for walking or cycling at your schoolplease contact the Sustrans School Travel teamvia www.sustrans.org.uk/schooltravel

Local authorityIf you want Bike It to work with schools in yourarea, then write to Sustrans to register yourinterest. Write to: Sustrans School Travel,Sustrans, 2 Cathedral Square, Bristol BS15DD. Please also encourage enthusiasticschools to complete the online survey too.

Primary care trustIf you want Bike It to help you deliver your localphysical activity and child obesity strategies,please discuss this with your local authorityschool travel adviser and write to Sustrans.

Bicycle tradeIf you have contributed to the Bike Hub fund,thank you for your support. If you want to seethe project extended, please contact theBicycle Association or Association of CycleTraders. If your business is located where BikeIt is already active, please contact the local BikeIt officer to see how you can get involved. Theirdetails can be found atwww.sustrans.org.uk/bikeit

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Sustrans is the UK’s leading sustainabletransport charity. Our vision is a world inwhich people choose to travel in ways thatbenefit their health and the environment.We work on practical, innovative solutionsto the transport challenges facing us all.

If you think what we do sounds sensible, weurgently need people like you to help us domore. By giving from £5 a month you’ll start tomake a difference. Without this financialsupport, Sustrans and projects such as Bike It would probably not exist.

To find out more about Sustrans or to becomea Sustrans Supporter please visitwww.sustrans.org.uk or call 0845 113 00 65.

Sustrans’ Bike It is generously supported by:

ISSN 1755-3415 (Print) ISSN 1755-3423 (Online)©Sustrans. May 2010Registered Charity No. 326550 (England and Wales)SC039263 (Scotland) VAT Registration No. 416740656

and many local authorities and primary caretrusts.

Head Office: Sustrans, 2 Cathedral Square, College

Green, Bristol, BS1 5DD

Photography: Sustrans staff, Pete Le May, Keith Waters (Mirror)Design: www.trmvs.co.ukPrint: printed on Revive 100 Offset. This is an FSCcertified paper made using 100% post-consumerwaste.

Get them thinking in the right direction.

Sustrans is the UK's leading sustainable transport charity. Our vision is a world in whichpeople choose to travel in ways that benefit their health and the environment. We are thecharity working with children in schools, with families at home, with employers and withwhole communities to enable people to travel much more by foot, bike and public transport.

Sustrans is a doing charity working with many partners to bring about real change. Our thousands of supporters have enabled us to change our world one mile at a time. You can too.

Join the movement today at www.sustrans.org.uk/support