As part of the countdown to the Tour de France Grand Départ coming to Cumberland in 2027, 96 children from the area will soon be gifted a new bike.
With support from Carlisle based company Story Contracting Ltd, Cumberland Council has put in place a bike give-away project that will benefit dozens of young children.
Linking in with the Tour de France’s JOY programme – which aims to bring the joy of cycling to everyone - the bikes will be provided direct to some participants of the council’s Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme through a prize draw.
The first of the bikes – sourced locally through E-Venture Bikes in Keswick - will be handed over during October half-term.
Leader of Cumberland Council, Cllr Mark Fryer, has spearheaded the bike scheme and is looking forward to seeing local children using their new bikes. He said:
“We are really excited about welcoming the Tour de France to our area in July 2027 - not once, but twice - as part of stage one and stage two. We want the event to inspire people of all ages to get on their bikes and get active.
“We want to break down the barriers to making that happen and with the kind support of Story’s will soon be providing free bikes to local children. We will also be supporting community groups to support the promotion of cycling and setting up cycle hubs in local leisure facilities.”
Fred Story owner of Story Contracting and Story Homes added:
“We’re pleased to support Cumberland Council with this initiative. The Tour de France coming to our area is a fantastic opportunity to inspire local kids to take part in sport, and if these bikes help more children to take up cycling, then that can only be a good thing. We’d encourage other businesses to get involved and help the scheme reach even more young people.”
The Tour de France is the world's largest annual sporting event and attracts millions of spectators along the route and a global television audience.
The 2027 Grand Départ will begin in Edinburgh before finishing its opening stage in Carlisle on Friday 2 July. Stage Two will start in Keswick on Saturday 3 July before travelling through the Lake District and Lancashire to Liverpool.
As part of its role as host authority to Stages 1 and 2 of the Grand Départ GB 2027 Tour de France, Cumberland Council will be supporting the delivery of the national Tour de France JOY programme, which is designed to achieve socio-economic impact and legacy benefits from hosting the race.
The JOY programme has six themes: girls’ participation, employability, arts & culture, digital schools, community engagement and soft power, trade & diplomacy.
The girls’ participation theme supports the wider aspirations of Grand Départ GB and the council to increase participation in cycling as a result of hosting the Tour de France.
Under the national JOY programme, British Cycling and Grand Départ GB is developing a locally deliverable cycling project for girls aged 7-11, teaching skills and improving confidence, which they are currently testing through a pilot scheme. Three community organisations - Watchtree Nature Reserve, Whitehaven Harbour Youth and Carlisle Rock Youth - in Cumberland have signed up to deliver the pilot scheme.
To find out more about the Tour de Frances stages in Cumberland in July 2027, visit www.cumberland.gov.uk/TourdeFrance