Bikeability funding revealed to be £20 million

The Department for Transport has revealed the Bikeability budget for training school age children in safe cycling techniques to be £20 million next year, a record spend.

Stemming from the widely-spread £2 billion cycling and walking pot, the funds will go toward ensuring half a million children are offered training, furthering the tally of 3.6 million given the opportunity to learn since 2007.

The Bikeability Trust is continuing to offer bursaries for those wanting to join the industry, boosting the number of Bikeability instructors, which is important to ensure every child who wants it can be trained.

Last week a gathering of industry figures at the Bikeability annual conference heard Conservative Active Travel Minister Trudy Harrison say “Cycling helps both our planet and our wellbeing, and learning to cycle is also an important life skill.

“Our ambition is for every child to be able to access Bikeability training and I’m delighted we’ve been able to invest a record £20 million to help make this a reality.”

Emily Cherry, CEO at the Bikeability Trust, added “We have already trained more than 3.6 million children how to cycle confidently and safely. This record investment will help us to achieve our ambition of offering every child cycle training.

“Bikeability teaches children an essential life skill that benefits their health and helps them make more sustainable travel choices. Getting children cycling when they’re young embeds active habits for life, gives them the independence to travel to school and, most importantly, helps them discover how fun cycling is.”

The Government has set a target for half of all journeys in towns and cities to be walked or cycled by 2030, an ambition that has been aversely affected by the removal of infrastructure and safety measures put in place during Covid’s early peaks. The most recent UK cycling and walking data can be viewed here.