Posted: 18 February, 2026
Wheels for All and the Bikeability Trust have today announced a new pilot project designed to improve access to Bikeability for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND).
Running between January and March 2026, the pilot will establish a small number of SEND schools as inclusive cycling mini hubs, each equipped with adapted cycles, trained Bikeability instructors and confident school staff. The project aims to test, refine and strengthen how Bikeability can work for SEND pupils, with learning used to inform future national guidance and delivery.
Five SEND schools will be selected from a shortlist across different regions. Each school will receive a small fleet of adapted cycles, stored on site and will host a block of inclusive Bikeability sessions delivered by trained registered instructors. School staff will be trained alongside instructors to help embed inclusive cycling into everyday school activity.
Wheels for All will provide specialist inclusive cycling training, adapted equipment and mentoring, while local Instructor Training Organisations will nominate instructors and coordinate delivery. The Bikeability Trust is supporting the pilot and will use the learning to shape how Bikeability continues to evolve for SEND pupils.
Ian Tierney, Chief Executive of Wheels for All, said:
“This pilot is about showing what Bikeability can look like when it is inclusive, and the right support is in place. By combining adapted cycles, skilled instructors and confident school staff, we can create positive cycling experiences for SEND pupils and build models that can be replicated more widely.”
Emily Cherry, Chief Executive of the Bikeability Trust, said:
“We want Bikeability to be accessible to every child. This pilot allows us to learn directly from SEND settings, understand what works best and use that insight to strengthen training, guidance and delivery nationally.”
The pilot will focus not only on delivery, but also on learning. Wheels for All will work with instructors and schools to capture feedback on pupil engagement, confidence and skill development, as well as instructor confidence in delivering inclusive sessions. This learning will be shared with the Bikeability Trust to support future improvements to Bikeability provision for SEND pupils.
The project has also attracted interest from national stakeholders, with the Department for Transport expected to visit one of the participating schools in February or March to see the pilot in action.
Further announcements will follow as participating schools are confirmed and delivery begins.
Find out more about Bikeability Trust here: https://www.bikeability.org.uk/
