Funding means training for 4,500 young cyclists

Four and a half thousand Buckinghamshire children will be able to get safety training on their bikes with the coming year's Bikeability scheme. This is almost twice as many children as received cycle safety training under the scheme last year. It's thanks for a £180,000 grant from the Department for Transport to Buckinghamshire County Council. Any school or youth group in Buckinghamshire can apply to the County Council for Bikeability funding, which then pays for local professional instructors to train children in school years five to nine. On-the-road training is in small groups, and includes experience dealing with traffic on short journeys, such as cycling to school, being clear with hand signals, turning at junctions, and identifying and dealing with hazards. Janet Blake, Cabinet Member for Planning and Transport said: 'It's really important to give our young people the skills and confidence to ride safely on today's roads - and to make it fun!' In the past year more than 130 schools and groups have run Bikeability sessions, said co-ordinator Georgina Longley, who will be promoting the scheme during the coming weeks. Schools and groups can apply for funding to the County Council at http://tinyurl.com/ph68l5a