Bracknell

Children who receive a bicycle from Santa this year can gain extra skills to make sure they are safe this Christmas holiday with two courses organised by Bracknell Forest Borough Council.

The first course is an off-road introduction to cycling for children aged 5 to 9 yrs of age and takes place on either Monday, December 28 or Friday, December 30 at Bracknell Sport Centre from 10.30am to 12 noon. Children will be taught the basics of cycling:

•Developing balance and control skills

•Controlled braking, starting and stopping and the general care of bicycles

•Raising understanding and awareness of cycling safety

In addition a four day cycling safety course has been organised for Bracknell children whose parents and carers wish they were safer cyclists.

Children aged 10 years or over, are invited to attend the four day course to enhance their cycling skills. Expert trainers will teach the youngsters for two hours each day, on how to get the best from their bike and the road.

The practical course helps children better control their bicycle, teaches them road safety knowledge, and makes them more aware of traffic around them.

The dates for the course will be: December 28, 29, 30 and January 3 inclusive from 10am to 12 noon.

Mary Ballin, Bracknell Executive member for Planning and Transportation, said: "We can all remember the thrills, spills and sometimes tears when Christmas brought our first bicycle.

"The 'getting started' course will be valuable and fun, and will lay the foundations for safe cycling in the future.

"The road-cycling course has trained hundreds of our older children over the past few years, and parents and road safety trainers are to be congratulated on their dedication to this very important issue."

Any parent wishing to enrol their child should contact Chris Pickett, Bracknell Road Safety Officer on: 01344 351212

Bracknell Forest Borough Counci ~ 6 December 2005