Posted: 22 November, 2022
WHEELS FOR ALL KINGSTON - THE OFFICIAL LAUNCH
Q: HOW DID THE DAY GO?
A: More people turned up than expected, but everything went super-smoothly and everyone had a great time. The Deputy Mayor, Nicola Nardelli, came along to declare our Wheels for All Centre officially open. From the excellent number of people attending and the smiles on everyone’s faces, it was clear to see that there is a need here and how the Centre is being welcomed by the community.
Q: WAS THIS YOUR FIRST BIG EVENT?
A: The centre has been running for a few months, and we did some great taster days in August, but this was the proper launch to make everything official. Half-term made it ideal for parents and school-age or college-age children to come along.
Q: DID IT TAKE LOTS OF PLANNING?
A: We – myself and two of my regular volunteers – ran the day rather like a typical Monday session with some of our regular booked-in groups, like HFT Day Care Centre and Seeability, asking them to come in a little earlier than their normal slots, so anyone coming along to see what we are about would see people up and riding.
On a normal weekly session we would have about 25 regular riders … but about 45-50 came to the launch day, which was fantastic. It did take a bit of jiggling things around, but we felt that both made the event easier to organise and was a better way to show us ‘in action’, just doing what we do – that was super-important too.
Q: WHAT KIND OF ADAPTED CYCLES DID YOU HAVE AVAILABLE?
A: We were ready in advance of the 10am start with all the cycles out, our fleet of 15, plus a few extra that Tom Webster brought us – we had side-by-sides, wheelchair bikes, some Tomcat trikes in different sizes, regular trikes, handcycles, tandems, a bucket-seat carrier, an e-bike, and Tom also brought four frame-runners which could prove very popular – judging by the enquiries we have had already – and are now going to stay here for use in our weekly sessions.
Q: WHAT BENEFITS DID THE EVENT BRING FOR YOUR REGULAR PARTICIPANTS?
A: A young Downs Syndrome lady called Natalie was one of our very first participants when the Centre first opened. Natalie always goes on the handcycle – that is what she chooses every week – but now, because of the launch event, she has a new favourite – the recumbent Tomcat Trike!
Because there were so many bikes out on the track, rather than waiting for one of the hand-bikes to come back, and also perhaps not feeling overwhelmed by too many choices, she was happy to have a go on something different and absolutely LOVED it.
Q: WHAT NEWCOMERS ATTENDED THE EVENT?
A: 2 people came along who are partially-sighted, and a volunteer was able to take them out on a side-by-side: that way the partially-sighted rider is able to sit on a cycle saddle and ride with 4 wheels – get that feeling of being back on a conventional saddle.
Another visitor was a man of 90 who has just had a new heart valve – he wants to get fit again, and he had an amazing time.
It is great to see people coming along for all sorts of different reasons.
WHEELS FOR ALL KINGSTON - THE REGULAR MONDAY SESSIONS
Q: TELL US ABOUT THE AREA WHERE YOUR WHEELS FOR ALL CENTRE IS LOCATED
A: We are fortunate to live where we do – Kingston as an area is trying to improve its cycling infrastructure. Richmond Park is on our doorstep and is hugely popular with cyclists and cycling groups. So there are people around here who love cycling – like me – and they are the people we want to reach with our publicity – they are our future volunteers.
We have a great venue – Places Leisure. Unfortunately, the Centre Manager, Darrell Warren, was on leave this week, but both he and his manager, Marie, could not be more accommodating.
Q: DO YOU HAVE GOOD COUNCIL SUPPORT?
A: We are really well-supported by our council. Martell Atterbury, the officer for Physical Activity, Exercise and Sports Development, is excellent. There is a local Eco Group (a group for young people with mental health and learning difficulties) and she is helping them find funding for their sessions. A cycle maintenance course had proved extremely popular, so now we are working together, and people from the Eco Group are coming to our sessions try inclusive cycling. Martell also organised all the coffee and cakes for the launch day, which went down really well.
Q: WHAT OTHER LOCAL ORGANISATIONS GET INVOLVED?
A: We have good connections with various local groups and education establishments. Kingston Association for the Blind come every week, particularly for tandem rides. We are able to assist them as they train the front riders of tandems during our track time. The riders on a tandem are known as Pilots and Stokers – so I guess we are a Pilot Training Academy!
One of our school groups is Strathmore school, a special needs school where the students (aged 14-18) tend to have very challenging learning difficulties, some need to have 2 carers. The excitement and joy which they experience in their sessions is something to behold. Like anyone who is involved in Wheels for All, you really have to see it happen in front of your eyes. That is when the magic happens and you go home with the biggest smile!
Q: HOW MANY PEOPLE CAN YOU CATER FOR IN A SESSION?
A: For most sessions, the limit would be about 10 people, but one of our regular groups can often bring 11, 12 or even 14 participants, with a great core team of carers. In our HFT Day Care Centre group, one of the younger guys, who is about 19, has started to organise getting back all the helmets at the end of the session – it is really nice to see him wanting to give something back
Q: WHO ARE YOUR VOLUNTEERS AND HOW DID YOU FIND THEM… OR HOW DID THEY FIND YOU?
A: Volunteers are the lifeblood of our Wheels for All Centres – without them, we could not do what we do. My two full-day regular volunteers are Malcolm and Alan.
Malcolm Porter has been volunteering with Wheels for All for 7 or 8 years now. He used to go and volunteer at Wheels for All Epsom, but he lives much closer to Kingston, and now he does both. He is the welcoming face of our centre and does a lot of ‘Meet & Greet’.
Alan Grant came to us from a WhatsApp chat group we both are in after a cycling event we completed together. There are so many keen cyclists around here, and many are connected to the local Cycling Club – Kingston Wheelers – who supplied our two newest half-day volunteers.
We put a callout in a local newsletter, “Richmond Park Cyclists” and we know we always have the support of the local cycling community in general.
Q: DO YOU NEED MORE VOLUNTEERS?
A: We know that our volunteers find it hugely rewarding. Having 3 volunteers for each one-hour session is fine, we can cope with the current numbers, but to have 4 would be a luxury.
And the dream would be to add a second day – that would be the next big step and would definitely mean finding more volunteers.
THE ROLE OF COORDINATOR, CURRENT AND FUTURE PLANS
Q: DO YOU ENJOY YOUR JOB?
A: If you see me on a Monday morning, I am always smiling. And that never used to be the case. I started here in July this year, part of learning the role was visiting some Wheels for All Centres in Woking and Epsom, and a training session at the soon-to-open Harrow centre. I absolutely love it.
My background was corporate, particularly in management training and adult education, and that led me to start doing various safeguarding certifications, which were certainly handy to have when this opportunity came along at Wheels for All.
Now my job gives me such a buzz. You know you are making a real difference in people’s lives – participants, their families, and our volunteers. It’s a very feel-good thing to do.
Q: DO YOU HAVE MUCH TO DO WITH OTHER WHEELS FOR ALL CENTRES?
A:It is great to share good ideas, lessons learnt and best practice with other centres.
Maryanne from Wheels for All Harrow came to see us one Monday before now and came again to the launch, because she thought the event would give her ideas and impetus.
Julie – who is from Essex and setting up Wheels for All Tendring – and I will be having a meeting on Zoom to look at her set-up plans and see if I can share any ideas that worked well for us in Kingston.
Good support has also come from our central Wheels for All team who have mentored staff and volunteers through this development phase.
Q: WHAT ARE YOUR PLANS FOR THE FUTURE?
A: We know that things can slow down a bit over Dec/Jan, but that should allow us to lay down good plans for next year. And as I said, we would love to be able to offer an additional day of sessions. We need to decide when this is feasible, and whether to do another weekday or try to do a weekend offering, so that more children and young adults might be able to attend.
We have some great ideas for school holiday events: for example, we have a few balance bikes, so we might be able to offer more family days.
Q: HAVE YOU ANY TOP TIPS FOR SPREADING THE WORD ABOUT WHAT WHEELS FOR ALL DO?
A: You cannot underestimate the power of social media – not just for publicising events, making sure people know about your regular sessions, or recruiting more volunteers, but also to tap into the enthusiasm and love of cycling in the wider cycling community.
We have an Instagram account @wfakingston, but some groups use Facebook, others Twitter … there is no right or wrong, but just make sure you are getting the message out there.
I have been reaching out to cycling guys, ‘influencers’, on YouTube and other forms of social media.
One, a cyclist called Francis Cade, originally from this area, is currently cycling across America with his friend on a handcycle, for charity. I have invited him here in February or March (depending on how long the USA trip takes). I would love him to come to a Wheels for All session and make one of his videos showing what we do. Having him talk about us on his channels would be great for expanding our reach.
Another well-known cyclist on social media, Chris Hall, has shared our launch etc on his stories and that has helped continue our outreach to the cycling community.
Q: CAN YOU LEAVE US WITH ANY FINAL WORDS OF WISDOM?
A: “The more you wave the flag, the more people will see it.”
