Cycle Training

Cycle Training in the Royal Borough

New for 2008 - Cycle Training

The Borough has started this years cycle training programme early and schools have already been asked to participate.

This year our cycle training scheme will mirror the National Standards for Cycle Training. To find out further information on the National Standards please follow the link to the Cycle Training Standards Board website. Please not that the link is external and will navigate away from the Royal Borough website.

We are now looking for volunteers to help deliver cycle training to young people within Borough Schools.

If you are aged 18 or over, are a keen cyclist and would like to help others to learn how to cycle please contact the Road Safety Department.

In addition, if you would like your school to take part it is important to ask the Head Teacher to make contact with the Road Safety Department and register an interest.

If your school will not be taking part in training in may be possible for you to arrange one to one training through CTC - The UK's National Cyclist Organisation. Visit the National Cyclist Organisation website for further information. Please note that this is an external link and will navigate away from the Borough web page.

Cycle Training Scheme

Please find further information below on the cycle training scheme which has taken place in the school year September 2007 - June 2008.

On-road cycle training

Is co-ordinated and facilitated by the Boroughs Road Safety Team and is primarily organised within Borough schools.  To date in 2008, 27 schools within the Borough have run cycle training, with children recieving training under the instruction of volunteer cycle trainers.

The On Road Training is aimed at children aged 10 and mostly takes place on the road at designated sites. The course focuses on the importance of road safety, cycle control and safe road manoeuvring. It is carried out over a period of 8 - 10 hours, spread over a number of days/weeks.

Participants need:

• To be able to ride a roadworthy bike - for tips check out the cycling advice page
• To wear a cycle helmet that meets the approved standards and that fits them correctly - for tips chceck out the helmet advice page
• The Borough supplies participants with a fluorescent/reflective tabard to wear while undertaking the training on the road.

The Scheme

• All bikes are checked during an introductory session to ensure that they are roadworthy
•  Training takes place in the playground only for the first two sessions
• The remaining sessions are carried out on the road, using local designated road sites, which have been road safety checked
• Trained instructors continually assess the children who can work towards three levels of achievement: gold, silver or bronze
•  The children who have reached a satisfactory standard of training at the end of the course are given a badge and a certificate.

The content of the training scheme allows children to practice:

• Cycle control and coordination
• A safe start and safe stop
• Turning left and right
• Overtaking parked vehicles
• Signalling
• An emergency stop and safe re-start.

Supervised cycle training helps youngsters to:

• Develop looking and listening skills, recognising and assessing potential risks and hazards.
• Judge speed and distance accurately to make relevant judgements.
• Understand the difference between playing with, and riding a bike safely on the road.  Instructors stress the need for cyclists to be aware of the potential erratic behaviour of other road users.
• Recognise the importance of safety features including cycle helmets, lights and reflectors, reflective and fluorescent materials.
• Learn more about safer cycling, the use of safe cycle routes, and gain a sympathetic approach to pedestrians on shared route paths.

Back to top

Off - Road Cycle Training

This is a basic course which aims to give cyclists practice in cycle control by using a variety of activities. It involves a series of exercises that take place entirely off the road, usually in a school playground during lesson time or at the end of the school day

. The content of the course includes;

• the use of gears
• safe starts and stops
• looking without wobbling
• signalling left and right

Cycle training is an excellent way to promote safer cycling. For more information on this, please see our School Travel Plans web page.