Question to the Department for Transport:

To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the merits of increasing his Department's funding to Bikeability.

The Bikeability programme is an important part of the Government’s Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy, because it provides the next generation of cyclists with the skills and confidence to make cycling a natural choice for shorter journeys.

The Strategy included a commitment that the Department would invest £50 million to support Bikeability over the period to 2020, and the programme is currently delivering more than 300,000 training places per year to children in England outside London. The Government also announced in August that it would provide an additional £1m of funding for Bikeability as part of a suite of new measures aimed at halving childhood obesity by 2030.

A further £1 million has been raised through a commercial partnership between Halfords and The Bikeability Trust. Additional funding has also been allocated to a new pilot scheme to develop a cycle training package for driving instructors aimed at improving empathy and understanding between road users. Funding and delivery of Bikeability in London is devolved to Transport for London and the London boroughs.

Future funding for Bikeability will be considered during the next Spending Review. The Department for Transport is currently evaluating the benefits of the programme with more than 200 schools nationwide, and expects to be in a position to publish the findings in summer 2019.