CYCLING 4 EVERYONE (C4E) is a social enterprise trading as a company limited by guarantee with charitable aims aiming to inspire, educate and support people and communities regardless of background or age, to be able to cycle and to enjoy the health, wellbeing and environmental benefits that cycling can bring.
Background to Ashington project Following delivery of Bikeability cycle training commissions in 2021 delivered to both local job seekers and asylum seekers at Hirst Park, an area of high deprivation in Ashington, our work led us to set a bike workshop one day a week to support new and returning cyclists with bike and maintenance issues. To assist with our work we were offered the use of the downtime of a small workshop in a building managed by Full Circle Food within Hirst Park for 5 hours a week. We have used the workshop every Tuesday over the past 18 months. Our workshop receives and upcycles donated bikes which we sell at low cost along with providing essential maintenance support, learn to fix, learn to ride training and led rides.
We have brought together a team of both volunteer and paid mechanics, Bikeability instructors and ride leaders and with our combined skills we offer regular community days when we sell affordable bikes with learn to ride support to the local community and regular community rides.
The demands for our services has gradually increased and continues to do so. Not just the local community, Ashington itself, needs a place to seek low cost reliable bikes, essential repairs and parts for bike maintenance as there is no bike shop or source of bike consumables in the Ashington area.
Our funding has been patchy using financial donations from bike sales, small amounts of Cycling Uk’s Big Big Revival and Sustrans allowing minimal funding for specific events and harnessing volunteers. However our funding position is unsustainable as our qualified staff need paid for key positions and we don't have premises which we can utilise exclusively for our cycling project restricting our growth. Our work has also been recognised and endorsed in the Northumberland Council commissioned Rydar Architects report and masterplan for the Hirst area of Ashington.
Given that for our customers a bike is essential, to exit the Ashington community would be a travesty. We need to secure funding support to continue to offer our services and grow to help more people in the Ashington area to cycle and realise the benefits of cycling.
