PUPILS across Reigate and Banstead are doing wheely well when it comes to cycling to school.
Nearly 30 per cent of students attending schools in the borough which are taking part in the national Bike It initiative are regularly cycling to school – compared to a national average of just 2 per cent.
Bike It is a project by charity Sustrans which aims to create a sustainable culture of cycling to school.
Sustrans is now working with 40 schools in the borough to provide children with the skills and information needed so they can regularly take to two wheels.
The Bike It scheme has been so successful that at the end of this summer, schools that started the project in September 2012 saw a doubling of levels of regular cycling to school.
Making cycling fun and rewarding is at the heart of the project.
This term has seen Bike Breakfasts, Bling your Bike competitions, a Bike Bingo incentive scheme and Be Bright days when children dress up in reflective clothing to highlight the importance of being visible.
Schools participating in the scheme include The Warwick School in Redhill, Aberdour in Banstead, Langshott Infants in Horley, and Woodmansterne Primary.
Hannah Sims, Sustrans' Reigate and Banstead Bike It officer, said: "Cycling to school is a great way for our children to get the exercise they need every day to keep healthy, and research shows it allows them to become better students in the classroom.
"Schools in the area should be proud of what they have been able to achieve."
Sarah Beasley, head teacher at Holmesdale Primary School in Reigate, said: "We have really enjoyed being part of Bike It.
"It has really encouraged the children to cycle or ride by scooters to school – and we now have overflowing cycle and scooter sheds.
"They have particularly enjoyed 'blinging' their bikes, and doing off-road cycling in our woodland area."
Sustrans works in Reigate and Banstead thanks to funding from the Department for Transport.
