Cardiff City legend Scott Young will give a boost to a Cardiff primary school’s cycling facilities next week.
The former Bluebird defender, who is now football development manager at the club, will officially open Gabalfa Primary School’s new cycle storage unit on Wednesday March 24 at 10am.
The school was recently chosen to be part of the Sustrans Bike It project which aims to encourage children to ride to school and now, the Gabalfa pupils have somewhere safe, dry and secure to store their bikes following the installation of the cycle storage unit.
Since becoming part of the Sustrans project, the school has worked closely with the Bike It officer in Cardiff to hold Bike It Assemblies, Bike It maintenance sessions, to learn to cycle and to find out more about cycle safety.
Year 6 pupils have undergone the Council Road Safety Team’s on-road cycling training and have enjoyed the opportunity to cycle safely within the community.
Headteacher John Tobutt is hoping that the new facility will encourage even more Gabalfa youngsters to travel to school on two wheels.
He said: “We have around 20 pupils regularly cycling to school now and we’re delighted to have a dedicated space for the children to safely keep their bikes during the school day.
“Pupils hope that by cycling to school they will become healthier as well as cut down on traffic emissions which will then make our community a better place in which to live. Our new storage unit will only encourage them to cycle even more and we are delighted to be welcoming Scott Young to Gabalfa Primary to officially open the facility.”
Executive Member for Education and Lifelong Learning, Cllr Freda Salway, said: “Children feel fitter and more independent if they can make their own way to school on their bikes. They can also be more alert and ready to begin the school day if they have cycled into school. It’s wonderful to see pupils at Gabalfa Primary taking up the challenge to improve their own health and wellbeing as well as doing that little bit for their community and the environment. I hope the new cycle storage facility motivates even more pupils to bike it to school.”
