Training for Schools

Many adults, especially those who were at primary school during the 1970s-80s, will have had the opportunity to take the old 'Cycling Proficiency Test', which is still being used by some local authorities.

However, this old method of teaching had one major failing - it was all done on the playground! At no point did any of the children experience what riding on a real road was like unless their parents allowed them to.

All that changed in 2006 when the new National Standards for Cycle Training were rolled out, now known as 'Bikeability', with three levels, as follows:

• LEVEL 1: Basic Bike Control & Safety
  Includes: general bike safety checks, using brakes and gears effectively and where appropriate, ability to ride with one hand (in order to signal effectively) whilst in control, understanding of the best and most safe way to start and stop, slow speed manoeuvering, ability to look behind whilst riding in a straight line.

• LEVEL 2: Basic Road Riding
  Including: assertive road positioning, visual and auditory checks, effective signalling, left and right turns into and out of a variety of junctions, hazard perception, passing parked cars and other obstacles. The training is usually carried out on quieter roads in residential areas.

• LEVEL 3: Advanced Road Riding
  Includes: route-planning, negotiating complex road layouts and junctions, advanced road positioning & hazard perception, risk management. This training is carried out on more heavily trafficed roads and main routes, though under risk-assessed conditions.

Our Level 2 schools training is normally delivered over four sessions in groups of up to 6 children per instructor, once a week, with each session lasting 1.5-2 hours. The first session, the only one conducted on the school playground, allows our instructors to check that all the children who've opted for the training are already at Level 1, otherwise we can't take them out on the road. We can sometimes provide coaching for those who might not have reached Level 1 yet.

The remaining sessions then take place out on roads that are local to the school in a carefully planned and risk-assessed manner. The areas are chosen to be quieter, usually residential, roads with some traffic, parked cars, and a variety of junctions. The instructor is required to re-check the area before each session.

By the final session, each child should have reached Level 2 standard and be skilled and confident enough to be able to ride on the road in quieter residential areas as part of the traffic.

Importantly, every one of our instructors has had criminal records check and has a Enhanced Disclosure Certificate. For additional reassurance on the Level 2 training courses, our instructors all visit schools in teams of at least two and never have more than 6 children per instructor.

Our Level 3 schools training is carried out a little differently as a one-to-one individual session with a trained instructor. It usually lasts about 2 hours and can be done any time, although just after school is favourite. We can pick up trainees from school or from home. The usual route we ride is between home and school and may include busier roads and more complex junctions and roundabouts. By the end of the session the trainee will be able to decide on a route that they are capable of using.

NOTE ON HELMETS:

Each education authority area we teach in has its own rules as far as helmet-wearing goes. Some insist on all the children wearing a helmet, others leave the choice to the child's parent or legal carer, and some schools have their own individual policy.

Therefore if you're a parent whose child is going to have training at their school, it's important that you carefully read the helmet policy on the consent form.

If a local authority insists on helmet-wearing they will usually provide helmets to the school on loan, though you may need to check beforehand. In some instances Cycling Solutions may be able to provide a helmet temporarily until the child has their own, and we also have a limited number of bikes we can lend out, some of which can be modified for children with mild special physical needs.