Community & Business
30 June, 2022
Getting kids back on their bikes
RIDING a bike to school is a core memory for many people and Malanda State School has teamed up with Better Together, the Malanda Men’s Shed and Tablelands Regional Council to give kids that same experience every day.
After noticing that many kids couldn’t afford a bike, the school teamed up with Better Together to receive a grant for their Active Travel program.
The small project began in 2019 and continued to grow as more local organisations got onboard to ensure every kid had a bike and could get involved.
Principal Mark Allen believes that every kid deserves to keep fit and healthy and is glad to support them in this way.
“We have noticed that many underprivileged children cannot afford a bike – and our program has worked to achieve bikes for kids who really appreciate them,” he said.
“The Malanda Men’s Shed helped in our first year of the program with restoration of bikes.
Since then, Better Together came on board by helping with some resourcing for bike parts, helmets and staff training opportunities.
“TRC dump has come on board supplying bikes for restoration, as have Tablelands Police who have re-purposed unclaimed stolen bikes. We’ve been very blessed with the support of our community.”
So far, the introduction of this program has seen an increase in general attendance and engagement in the classroom as well as creating positive relationships within the community.
To ensure safe travel to school, staff members collect students at drop off points for the “bike and scooter bus”, giving the kids an active and fun start to every morning.
“The reaction is always positive – Who didn’t ride to school as a kid?! Riding to school with children gives joy to everyone who is part of it,” Mr Allen said.
