Low Carbon Louth, a local charity who work to support local initiatives towards sustainable lifestyles, have successfully held a series of free events to make cycling accessible for everyone across the weekend of Saturday 13^th and Sunday 14^th January. The events were part of the Cycling UK’s Big Bike Revival weekend, supporting everyone and anyone to begin or return to cycling.

Encouraging People to get back in the Saddle

Events over the two days were focused on encouraging people to get active and use their bike as we ‘wheel’ into 2024. The weekend’s events included: ‘Learn to Ride’ which welcomed people of all ages to start or restart cycling; ‘Learn to Fix’ which helped people to complete repairs on their own bikes, from mending a puncture to adjusting gears and brakes; and ‘Fix Your Bike’ which gave people the opportunity to bring along their bike for any repairs, safety checks and low-level maintenance services to get them ready for the led ride which took people along local roads in Louth.

James Pocklington, Event Organiser and Louth’s Wheels for Life Hub Leader says,

"Luckily the Lincolnshire weather was fine for us, and we had two busy mornings fixing bikes and helping riders gain more confidence on the road. We got some great feedback from participants who really appreciated the opportunity to get cycling once again. The support from Cycling UK was excellent and really helped us make this event a success. I'd recommend anyone thinking of holding a similar event to get in touch with Cycling UK for more information about the Big Bike Revival programme and get an event in the diary."

Lauren Baker, Cycling Development Officer for Cycling UK East Midlands, told us,

‘’It’s fantastic to see Low Carbon Louth helping their local community to get cycling this winter, and at Cycling UK we’re very pleased to be able to support this via our programme The Big Bike Revival. This initiative helps communities across England to cycle more regularly through free events focused on fixing bikes, teaching skills and leading rides. The Big Bike Revival will be opening again in March, any organisations interested in taking part are encouraged to get in touch.’’

The event received positive feedback from participants who joined us for the fix your bike and led ride. Cherryl joined the event with her friend Julie, and she told us,

"Julie has been encouraging me to get cycling for a while so this event was a chance to get started. I've now got a working bicycle and a lot more confidence on the road. I'm really looking forward to more cycling around Louth!"

Supporting Wheels for Life

Low Carbon Louth are a local hub for the Wheels for Life scheme in East Lindsey, supporting the Wheels for Life scheme overseen by Active Lincolnshire. The county-wide scheme for bike donation is taking pre-loved bikes and bringing them back to a usable condition for them to be donated to people who do not have the opportunity to enjoy the varied benefits of owning and using a bike. The Louth hub, which is being run by Low Carbon Louth from The Youth and Community Centre in the town, has been in operation since 2023 and continues to receive bike donations from residents to regift to people in transport poverty.

For more information about the events taking place at Low Carbon Louth email lowcarbonlouth@fastmail.fm or visit the Low Carbon Louth Facebook Page

For more information on donating a bike to the Wheels for Life Scheme, becoming a referral partner, or finding out how you can receive a bike, visit our Wheels for Life pages.