Breaking the cycle of disadvantage through bike education

When you push off and start pedalling your bike, what thought comes to mind?

Perhaps you think about how riding saves money on fuel and car maintenance? Maybe you think about the physical and mental benefits? Some of us might even think about how we’re doing our bit to save the planet.

For children in Melbourne’s outer east however, the opportunity to just ride a bike can take on far more significance.

Last week, children’s charity Variety presented students at Cire Community School in the Yarra Ranges with 25 new Fluid Nitro bikes as part of their Bikes for Kids program, who then assembled the bikes with the assistance of Bikes for Kids supporters Turosi Giving and MRP Wired Solutions.

For students between years 5 to 12, Cire Community School provides a trauma-informed education model for students who predominantly come from challenging backgrounds, and as Yarra Junction Campus Principal Jacqui Walker explained, building and learning how to ride a bike can create genuine pathways to positive futures that help break the cycle of disadvantage.

“The Variety Bikes of Kids encourages students to get active in their local community, learn a range of skills that can lead to employment opportunities, and most importantly, to enjoy themselves,” Walker said.

Given the plans to develop the Upper Yarra as an international mountain bike destination, students will also have a head-start at becoming an integral part of the community in the future.

Variety CEO Mandy Burns further outlined how the program presents an opportunity for students to connect with their peers and the community in a constructive way.

“For children, a bike is freedom, a bike is exhilarating, a bike and learning to ride is a sense of achievement. We also know that learning to ride a bike can mean connection to friends and regular exercise,” Burns said.

Burns also thanked MRP Wired Solutions and Turosi Giving, who funded the Cire Community School Bikes for Kids program that included helmets and locks.

Following the bike build, the school will now receive bike education from AusCycling, incorporating a one-hour session per week over four weeks for up to 25 students.

AusCycling Delivery Network Manager, Participation Sarah Harris said the aim is to ensure students build an important lifestyle skill for the future.

“The bike education sessions deliver a fun and interactive learning experience that teaches young people to develop their riding skills and confidence, which supports their independence,” Harris said.

“Specifically, the sessions improve skills in different cycling situations, and encourage students to explore their local area by developing road safety and situational awareness.”

Variety is now in its 21st year of the Bikes for Kids program, which has delivered almost 13,000 bikes for children living with disability, illness, or experiencing disadvantage, and is made possible through the support of Variety supporter, Anaconda.

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Photos: Variety