News
This section contains all the latest news from Knowsley
Council.
22 September 2010
Bike repair workshops for children.
Cycling pupils in Knowsley are getting lessons in how to keep
their bikes on the road.
Punctures and gear problems mean some bikes linger in hallways
for weeks.
Now Knowsley Council’s Road Safety and School Travel Plan Team
are running bike maintenance workshops in ten primary schools.
The sessions, which are also being held at a special school, are
run by qualified bike mechanics from the charity Cycling
Projects.
Pupils are being shown how to do minor repairs and everyone
taking part is given a maintenance handbook and a set of tyre
levers.
Last year hundreds of children brought their bikes in for
repairs that were carried out by mechanics at the schools.
This year it was decided that the sessions should be interactive
so the pupils can learn how to do the repairs themselves in
future.
“Punctures and gear or brake problems can be a real hassle for
young cyclists," said Cllr Dave Lonergan, Knowsley’s cabinet member
for regeneration, economy and skills.
“And repair shops can be expensive, so we thought the best thing
to do would be to teach the children how to do minor maintenance
themselves.
“A lot of children have taken up the call to try cycling – now
we need to make sure they can keep it up.”