More pupils get on their bikes in Billingshurst

As a fledgling Bike It School Billingshurst Primary School has been engaging pupils and parents to build a culture of active travel to and from school and after just a few short months of involvement in the national initiative the program has gone from strength to strength.
By The Newsroom
Published 1st Apr 2014, 07:08 GMT
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From the 3rd to the 14th March 2014 the school was proud to take part in the nationwide Big Pedal competition, and as a result logged 1,887 journeys over the two week period with staff noting a huge surge in pupils arriving on bikes or scooters. Since the start of the program the school has seen an increase of up to 30% of pupils regularly cycling to school, from almost zero several months ago. The children are now fundraising for a bike shelter which will be match funded by Sustrans a leading charity enabling people to choose healthier, cleaner and cheaper journeys.

To celebrate this achievement, Billingshurst Primary School recently held its second Bike It Breakfast, which provided a feast for over 150 pupils and parents thanks to the generous donation and support of Kavanagh’s Budgens, Billingshurst High Street. Pupils arrived early in the morning to enjoy a spread of cereals, fruit, muffins and pancakes.

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As part of the Bike It Program, the School has held a number of events over the past few months to encourage and support the pupils, including assemblies on safety and the importance of Being Bright and Being Seen and workshops on how to check your bike is safe to ride. Pupils benefitted from a visit by a bike mechanic who helped diagnose and fix minor problems on pupils’ bikes for free. Staff and pupils have created a Bike It Crew and will continue to promote the benefits of active travel over the summer term with a range of new activities, including guidance on how to repair punctures.

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Philip Borroughs, Bike It Officer, Chichester and Horsham, Sustrans South East comments:

“As the days get longer and the sun appears what better way to celebrate than to jump on your bike and enjoy the great outdoors. The pupils of Billingshurst Primary School have enthusiastically embraced the idea of cycling, scooting or walking to school and during the Big Cycle competition we have regularly achieved between 25% and 30% of pupils doing this which is incredible, we are sure this trend will continue.”

Report by Kate Clifford on behalf of the BPSCA and Philip Burroughs, Bike it.

Related topics:BillingshurstBig Pedal