We believe every child should have a bike regardless of circumstances and we'd like to make that happen. We have demand, we have the bikes and we have our volunteers ready to go but now we need you!
Who doesn't remember their first bike, and the freedom of learning to whizz along under your own steam? Unfortunately, lots of families in Norfolk are unable to afford bicycles and their children miss out on this experience.
In particular, we heard from families where either a parent or a child was disabled, from single parents and from families where two working parents struggled to make ends meet. We also heard about children in care and children impacted by domestic violence. At Bicycle Links, we decided to do something about this by setting up the project.
In 2021 we were accepted as a preferred project by the Aviva Community Fund, and set up a page on Crowdfunder. We were delighted to receive nearly £4,500 in donations from Aviva staff and the public, and FB4K in Norfolk launched.
In 2022 we thought we'd have another go. This time we
were lucky enough to secure £5,000 in funding from Norfolk Community Foundation through their Love Norfolk Fund.
For both rounds, a great deal of work was contributed 'in kind' by Bicycle Links and our team of volunteers as a contribution to the project.
We supplied 45 bikes (plus helmets, locks and lights) to local schools, and to organisations such as Leeway and Social Services for children that they had identified.
In order to benefit from the summer holiday (we received the funding in June), we distributed over 60 bikes direct to families, following an online call for applications.
We're Crowdfunding! Watch this space...
Applications are only open whenever we have funding. However you can add your name to our mailing list below, and the next time we have funding available we'll send a message out to the list. If you work with families or children in need, please add your email address and tick the 'Organisation' button, and you will hear next time we have funding for bikes available. Be assured that we will only use this list to announce an application window for Free Bikes 4 Kids, so you won't receive junk mail or advertising.
135-137 King Street
Norwich
NR1 1QH
United Kingdom
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