This project was prompted by the Poynton British Cycling Breeze Ladies' group riding along the Middlewood Way. We enjoyed the cycling experience along such a wonderful local traffic free resource. The old railway cutting is an ideal surface providing safe off-road cycling for all. We wanted to share this experience with limited mobility wheelchair users. A bike with adaptations for wheelchair users could be used both by individuals with limited mobility as well as by many local community groups. For example students from the Seashell trust, local nursing homes and dementia groups. Able-bodied cyclists would be able to join with the limited mobility user and together they enjoy the social aspect of getting outside, enjoying the countryside, improving both their physical and mental wellbeing. The Seashell trust are very enthusiastic about the opportunities this project could give their users. Who knows if the project can grow to include more bikes and greater access for all? The Middlewood Way links the communities of Poynton with those around including Bollington, Disley, Marple, Adlington and Pott Shrigley and many more. In the future can we grow to provide adaptive bikes based there? Making it happen. We know there will be some adaptations needed to use and access the Middlewood Way, and we are working with The Ranger Service and local Town and County Councils to make this happen. They have been most helpful. We are also looking for a base to store and give access to the adaptive bike and here, we have involved the Boars Head Public House on Shrigley Road North. The Boars Head is a great community pub, supplying food and drink and is a perfect starting place for cyclists and walkers alike along the Middlewood Way. We thank them also for their support. We were extremely grateful for all the amazing support and enthusiasm our project has so far received! We have been working with various supporters including: Poynton Town Council; the former Poynton Town Mayor Sarah-Jane Gilmore; British Cycling; Cycling Projects UK; Carmichael Sports; the Ranger service on the Middlewood Way; the Boars Head Public House and Cheshire East Council. Funding the project. An adaptive bike is expensive! To fund the purchase of the bike we were extremely grateful to have been one of the recipients of the Poynton Town Mayor’s fundraising for 2019-20 and to have benefited from the Waitrose community fund and Poynton Area Community Partnership as well as many individual donations and gifts. We appreciate them all for their generous contributions.
