Wokingham Borough Connect
 Winter Wheelers
We are over halfway through Winter Wheelers! You can ride your bike anywhere, for as long or as little as you like. Even a 10-minute spin counts! Everyone who takes part will be in the running for a small daily prize such as commuter trousers from M1LE LDN; gloves from Loffi; Proviz REFLECT360 Cycling Jacket/Gilet; a bike cave from Cave Innovations or a pro subscription to Huli.
Logging your rides during Winter Wheelers will also earn you entries into the prize draw on 24 December to be in with a chance of winning a local bike shop gift card worth £300 as well as entries into the draw on Christmas Day to win an electric bike worth up to £1,500.
Find out more here on how you can sign up for Winter Wheelers and take part.
Wokingham Air Quality Project
Twyford Tree Festival
The My Journey Air Quality Officer attended the first ever Twyford Tree festival on Sunday 28th November which was held at Stanlake Meadows in Twyford and was organised by Twyford Parish Council.
The event was a great success and many families got to plant their very own tree and learn more about the importance in the fight against climate change. Trees improve air quality and soak up carbon dioxide. Our Air Quality Officer ran leaf themed craft activities which were very popular and some lovely leaf keyrings and necklaces went home with families.
Tree Planting at Shinfield St Mary's Junior School
The Air Quality Officer has been helping plant more trees in the borough. Trees have lots of benefits for the environment, remove pollution from the air and help to improve air quality. To celebrate how much we all love trees, the Year 5 pupils at Shinfield St Mary’s Junior School planted some baby trees at the school with the helping hand of our Air Quality Officer and Matt Knight, who runs the eco-club at the school.
These trees were planted as part of the Woodland Trust trees for schools, however as part of the five year 250k tree planting project we have now got direct funding from the Woodland Trust to help support with tree planting initiatives across the borough.
If you have a large area of space that you would like to plant some trees on, get in touch with us at 250ktreeproject@wokingham.gov.uk.
Crosfields School Goes Green
Crosfields School were presented with their green accreditation for their Modeshift STARS travel plan on 7 December. The school began working on their Modeshift STARS travel plan in early 2021, to help encourage sustainable travel as the school expands to include students aged 13 to 16. The expansion includes a brand-new senior school building, with sustainability at its heart.
To earn their green award, the school has identified initiatives that they will implement to encourage students to travel by sustainable means, such as walking, cycling and public transport. This includes such things as a dedicated bike week, publicising bus routes, having pupils monitor traffic levels and holding a Walk It Wednesday promotion. They have also identified key stakeholders who will be consulted on the travel plan, including parents and the Senior Management Team.
Crosfields School is now working towards achieving bronze level accreditation. This level requires them to complete the initiatives they have identified, and monitor student and staff modes of travel.
Congratulations to Crosfields School on achieving green accrediation!
Youth Climate Conference 2021
We recently held our second annual Youth Climate Conference, featuring a panel of council officers discussing energy, ecology and active travel as well as guest speakers from Teach the Future, Ethical Consumer and South East Rivers Trust. Listen to the conference here Youth Climate Conference 2021
Bling your Bike or Scooter Competition
We had lots of very Christmassy entries for our bling your bike, scooter or yourself competition, well done to everyone who entered. The winning photo was from David and Ilie who go to All Saints CofE Primary School. These two brothers sent in a lovely picture of their bikes, which they decorated themselves, on their way to school and have won a £25 Decathlon Voucher. The My Journey Team will be back with more active travel competitions in 2022!
Filmmaker Competition
We have extended our filmmaker competition to 7 January. The competition is aimed at all secondary school pupils, aged 11 or older in Wokingham borough. We are asking students to put together a five minute video on the benefits of active and sustainable travel. The winning entry will win an online film school experience for themselves and up to 30 of their classmates worth over £500, where they will learn new skills and tips to make their own movies. Full details can be found on our website.
Design a High-Vis Jacket
We have had over 180 entries to our design a high-vis jacket competition which closes on Friday, 17 December so there is still time to get your entries in! We will be busy judging all the entries and will announce the winner in the New Year.
Christmas tree treasure trails at California and Emmbrook Place
We are judging the entries of the Christmas tree treasure trails and will shortly announce the winners.
You may be thinking of buying an electric scooter (e-scooter) for Christmas but did you know it’s illegal to ride a privately owned e-scooter on the road, pavement or in a public space? If you do then you risk receiving a large fine, points on your driving licence and your e-scooter could be seized.
Privately owned e-scooters can only be used on private land, with the permission of the landowner. This is because e-scooters are classed as motor vehicles in law. So, in theory, this means that you need an MOT, road tax and insurance to use one, however it isn’t currently possible to register e-scooters in this way.
 Christmas Breeze Rides
13 ladies dressed up in Christmas jumpers or festive attire and decorated their bikes last Thursday to cycle on one of two Christmas Breeze rides which were run by local Breeze volunteers. One ride (totalling 22 miles) started in Wokingham and went north via Hurst, Shurlock Row and Binfield before heading to California Country Park; the other ride was 18 miles long, started in Crowthorne and went via Wokingham and Arborfield before heading to Finchampstead, where the two groups met up for coffee and cakes at Jacksons Café in California Country Park. It was great to see so many bikes parked at the park on a cold morning.
Breeze rides aim to get more women riding bikes, starting with easy rides (from 6–8 miles), then progressing to steady rides (10–20 miles) and later some more challenging rides. British Cycling are looking for more volunteers to train as “Breeze Champions” to lead these rides and we have a lot of demand from ladies in the Wokingham area who want to come on our rides.
If you think you could help, the training is free and is just a one-day course and you would only be asked to make a commitment to run a minimum of eight rides per year.
Find out more about the training here.
 Regular Cycle Training and Events
- Bikeability Learn to Ride sessions (£6) at FBC in Finchampstead (Wednesdays) and Woodford Park Leisure Centre (Thursdays) in Woodley
- FREE Balance Bike Clubs both at FBC (Wednesdays) and Woodford Park Leisure Centre (Thursdays)
- FREE Bike checks at Woodford Park Leisure Centre (Thursdays)
Further information and how to book can be found on our website.
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