Community / Free bicycles to be offered to children as part of pilot scheme
SHETLAND has been picked to pilot a recently introduced Scottish Government scheme aimed at providing bicycles to children whose families may not be able afford one.
The project, which will provide greater access to bikes for school-aged bairns, is running ten pilots across the country.
The trials will assess how best to provide the free bikes, with different approaches and delivery models involved.
The free bike project was announced last year.
A spokesperson for Shetland Islands Council said: “We will be offering a limited number of bikes to school aged children without one, where the cost of buying a bike may be a barrier to them learning to cycle.
“We will loan bikes to children so they can take part in ‘Bikeability’ cycle training sessions in Shetland schools, and for longer if necessary, to encourage them to cycle more often.
“This is part of a wider national ‘Access to Bikes’ pilot scheme funded by the Scottish Government, and we’ll announce more details on this scheme soon.”
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