Sustainable Warwickshire

The Cyc-Ability sessions are funded through the Warwickshire County Council’s £1m Green Shoots Community Climate Change Fund, which supports a wide range of community-powered initiatives across Warwickshire that are addressing the climate change emergency.

Heart of England Mencap was awarded £14,213 in funding as part of the scheme to create the new Cyc-Ability sessions. This money will enable them to offer fully accredited cycling sessions for people within the community who have either a disability or health issues.

The funding will be used to purchase four fully adapted trikes, meaning Heart of England Mencap can increase their capacity at the Stratford Cyc-Ability centre and to also explore the possibility of introducing Cyc-Ability sessions at Warwick’s St Nicholas Park.

This project is helping to tackle the inequalities many people with a disability face when trying to access mainstream sports and the green spaces within their community. It aims to provide the cyclists with skills and confidence, so that they are able to use a mode of transport that has minimal carbon emissions and a far less impact on our natural surroundings.

Cllr Heather Timms, Portfolio Holder for Environment, Climate and Culture, said: “This is a fantastic project proving that disability and health issues need not be a barrier to making the important modal switch from motorised vehicles to pedal power.

“Choosing active travel – whether that be walking, cycling or scooting –  particularly for short journeys is one of the biggest impacts that we can have on our own carbon footprints and the amount of air pollution that we are responsible for.

“I look forward to watching Cyc-Ability go from strength-to-strength on Stratford as we strive, together, for a Warwickshire that is sustainable now and for future generations.”

Kate Buttrick, Health and Wellbeing Program Manager from Heart of England Mencap said “This funding from the Green Shoots Fund has been instrumental in enabling Heart of England Mencap and our Cyc-Ability sessions to reach more people within our community who struggle to access inclusive sporting activities. 

“People join our sessions for many reasons – gaining confidence, meeting new people and gaining strength to name just a few – but we certainly all have one thing in common and that's our love of cycling and being outdoors!  These accessible sessions are also a great way to help educate people in ways we can all do our bit to help the environment and to reduce our carbon footprint - whilst having fun along the way!  A win-win for us all!”

More information about Cyc-Ability from Heart of England Mencap can be found online: https://www.heartofenglandmencap.org.uk/blog-4/category/Cyc-ability

Warwickshire County Council is currently encouraging residents to sign-up with Love to Ride and take part in Cycle September. Sign-up today: https://www.lovetoride.net/warwickshire 

For more information about how Warwickshire is facing the challenges of the climate change emergency, visit: https://www.warwickshireclimateemergency.org.uk/

Get the latest news about how Warwickshire County Council and partners are facing the challenge of the climate emergency and how you can get involved: http://eepurl.com/hrk-zf