FEATURE
reaching people who could benefit from their services. Wheels for All wants to be part of the solution to inactivity. And it’s not just disability, people can use their hubs for any number of reasons, from weight management to stroke support, cardiac rehab or dementia care. Users get the chance to access volunteer support and adaptive cycles, removing barriers to activity. And that’s not all, there’s the ability to bring mini hubs to users, be it a GP surgery, care home or school “we’ve had some real good experiences where we take a few bikes to a care home and we get the carers on and a lot of the residents on. It’s just a really good giggle and everyone’s having good fun and we’ll say, ‘Oh, you know, if you’d like to do this more often, then here’s the local hub.’ So, you do have to take it to the people. You have to get them thinking, ‘Oh, this isn’t so difficult and it’s easy to pedal,” Ian said. Ian, who has been with the charity for over 20 years, has big ambitions for Wheels for All. The goal is to create a quality hub in every local authority in England. The charity is currently mapping areas to implement services
32 | April 2025
next, looking at regions with high numbers of deprivation, disability and long-term illnesses. But to achieve their goal is a multi-department effort, from adult social care to education and leisure. But, despite funding constraints and the typical frustrations of running a charity, they now feel like they are in a place to do more, to work with other organisations to address areas where there are no provisions. They now have a structure of regional models and supporting regions, and they want to grow. In terms of next steps, Wheels for All is looking for partners to continue their journey. They’d like everyone to have the ability to experience the joy of cycling. “It’s important that we find as many partners as possible to come with us on this journey, and getting hubs open more often, getting more supporters, ideally, we’re always looking for ambassadors and patrons and anyone that wants to come with us and endorse what it is that we do. So there might be people in the cycle industry who are interested in how they can help, and I’m more than happy to chat with anyone.”
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