Parents ”prepared to pay for cycling proficiency tests for kids”

A family cycling survey undertaken by Frog Bikes has revealed that nearly three in four parents would be happy to contribute toward the cost of cycle training for their kids.

Pooling 2,000 parents, the survey suggests that 87.9 per cent would like to see their child receive guidance on how to cycle on the road, with 74.1 per cent saying they’d pay for a cycling proficiency style course.

Interestingly, just one in four (22.8%) said that the current state of the roads prevents them from encouraging their children to cycle more often. A similar percentage (23.6%) gave their kid’s bike an annual service.

Frog Bikes Technical Manger Stephen Johnson explains “Just like an adult bike a child’s bike is not just a toy and also needs to be inspected and serviced by a qualified mechanic at least once a year, all the moving parts such as cables, bearings, brake pads, chain and tyres over a period of time will start to wear and if not attended to could become unsafe and in extreme cases dangerous to ride. A basic service/ inspection at a reputable bike store is not expensive and would give you peace of mind knowing your child is safe, as well as keeping up the bikes second hand value.”

According to ROSPA road safety information published in October last year, almost one quarter of 19,000 cyclists killed or injured on British roads annually are children.

The research goes on to reveal that, despite major concerns about road safety, over 99 per cent of parents still believe learning to cycle is important. 71% of parents believed their children should cycle more than they currently do yet the largest proportion of participants, (38.6%) answered that they didn’t have enough time to do so.

The most popular reason given for cycling being important for children was that it is felt to be an essential life skill (39.1%), followed by health benefits (30.7%).