Bike Club is launched in Wales

Bike Club is launched in Wales 11/06/2010

Posted by Clive Andrews in Asda, Cardiff, Wales.
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Thanks to funding from Asda’s Pedal Power fundraising campaign, Bike Club is now expanding to further locations around the UK.

On Wednesday 9 June 2010, Bike Club (known as Clwb Beicio in Welsh) was formally launched in at the Urdd Gobaith Cymru in Cardiff. Gathered together were experts from various fields – education, youth work, health promotion, sport and crime prevention who came to find out more.

Significantly, Jane Davidson AM, the Welsh Assembly Government’s Minister for Environment, Sustainability and Housing, spoke at Bike Club’s launch. She told attendees how supportive she was of efforts to encourage cycling in Wales, and warmly welcomed Bike Club to the Cardiff area.

More thoughts came from Kevin Mayne, CEO of CTC, the national cyclists’ organisation, who described how Bike Club came about through a co-operation between CTC, ContinYou and UK Youth. Kevin described how, in Wales, working with Youth Cymru and ContinYou Cymru is enabling Bike Club to be tailored to local needs.

Sarah Troke, Bike Club’s UK manager, spoke in more detail about how Bike Club works. She described examples of Bike Club’s work in the first part of 2010, showing how in areas like Devon and Yorkshire, Bike Club’s small grants programme is providing new experiences for children and young people.

Explaining how Bike Club is working in Wales, Sarah introduced Melanie Davies, the Bike Club Development Officer for Cardiff and the surrounding areas. Melanie is the important contact for anyone in the Cardiff area of Wales who would like support or advice on setting up a Bike Club with a group of children or young people.

By this time, the invited guests were brimming with ideas on how Bike Club could help their schools, youth groups and projects, so group discussions enabled these ideas to be shared with the wider audience.

After a summing up from chair Pam Boyd of ContinYou, the event came to a close and everyone left with a clearer idea of how Bike Club is set to be an exciting development for Wales.

If you would like to know more about Bike Club in the Cardiff area, speak to Melanie Davies, Bike Club’s expert in Wales, on 07500 847381 or melanie.davies@bikeclub.org.uk.