Wokingham Borough Connect
 Go outside, get active and Beat the Street!
A popular community game designed to get everyone more active by exploring Wokingham Borough is coming back this summer.
Beat the Street, run by Intelligent Health in partnership with our My Journey team, takes place across Wokingham town, Winnersh, Woodley, Twyford, Finchampstead, Hurst and Wargrave from Wednesday 5 June to Wednesday 17 July.
The game, which is free to enter and open to all ages and abilities, sees players compete for points by tapping a special contactless card on “Beat Boxes” at more than 100 locations.
The boxes will be attached to lampposts and people can either walk between them or use other types of healthy, sustainable travel like cycling.
Anyone can pick up a free Beat the Street card from locations across the borough, or download the app if they’re over 13 years old, so it’s an easy way to get out and discover more local sights.
 Saddle up for family fun at Bikeathon
This year's Wokingham Bikeathon will take place on Sunday 23 June at Cantley Park in Wokingham town.
There will be a choice of four routes to suit all abilities and ages: 15 miles (short), 26 miles (intermediate), 36 miles (long) or 51 miles (extra long) with drink stops and toilets on all routes.
There will also be a Kidical Mass family bike ride, which is an organised bike ride for children led by adults.
You can bring your family or ride with your friends, and there will be refreshments with other activities and attractions at the finish line at Cantley. Entry costs are:
- Adults £20, plus optional £3 for sustainable medal
- Children (12-17 year olds) £5 or FREE with a paying adult, plus optional £3 for sustainable medal
- Under 12s FREE and can collect a sustainable medal
The sustainable medals have been donated by My Journey and booking is now open on the Bikeathon website.
 Get pedalling for prizes while there's time!
We're approaching the last week of May's Bike Month Challenge - and it's still not too late to join in. You can either sign up on the Love to Ride Wokingham website or download the Love to Ride app.
There are amazing prizes to be won and everyone is invited to take part - from regular riders to people who haven’t been on a bike in years (or ever).
To date there are 349 riders taking part, including 25 newcomers, who have cycled 36,249 miles and saved 3,301lb in carbon emissions. We have 42 teams from workplaces across the borough.
 Plan for quieter streets and safer school runs
We’re planning to help a school improve safety at drop-off and pick-up times by trialling a proven scheme in Wokingham Borough.
We’ll be seeking residents’ views on proposals for a "school street" at Radstock Primary School in Earley, which will encourage pupils to walk or cycle in.
This involves restricting motor traffic on streets around the school during the morning and afternoon rush hours only.
Restrictions would be enforced by number plate recognition cameras and clearly marked with signs. Some vehicles, like emergency services or residents needing access, would be exempt.
This has been successful in other places and the school supports the idea, so we’re working together to see if it’s feasible. It would reduce vehicle emissions in line with our climate goals and improve children’s health.
We’ve drawn up some initial ideas but haven’t made a final decision as this would be subject to consultation, which we’ll announce later in the summer.
Pupils put their best feet forward
This week is Living Streets' Walk to School Week where pupils record their journeys each time they walk, cycle or scoot.
There are wallcharts in each of the classrooms and activity booklets have been provided. Pupils only need to walk for five minutes or more to take part.
Some 29 schools in the borough have signed up this year, with over 9,000 pupils having the chance to take part in this campaign.
We're proud to support it as part of our efforts to tackle air pollution and climate change by reducing vehicle trips and emissions.
Walking or cycling to school is also great for pupils' health and has been shown to improve focus in the classroom too!
Getting in the healthy travel habit
Westende Junior School in Wokingham town have just achieved silver (very good) level under the national Modeshift STARS scheme.
This scheme recognises schools that write and go ahead with plans to get more pupils walking, cycling or scooting.
Shinfield Infant School have also applied for Modeshift STARS accrediation and will learn the result in the summer holidays.
If your school would like to sign up to Modeshift STARS, please contact us.
 Cyclists beware around dogs and horses
The sun's out again, which gives us a great opportunity to explore Wokingham Borough and other areas on our bikes.
You may encounter dogs and horses, which are both unpredictable so you need to take care to protect yourself and others.
Always be ready to stop, leave plenty of room when passing, slow down if you need to and make sure that owners or riders know you're there.
Horses are particularly risky, so follow the British Horse Society's advice:
- Alert the rider by calling something like "Hi, is it ok to pass?"
- Give horse and rider time to react as they may not hear you at first
- You're legally required to give way to horse riders on bridleways
- Watch for narrow "pinch points" and avoid overtaking in these areas
- Slow down or stop if the rider asks you to. They may be aware that their horse is about to react to something, and could behave unpredictably
- Pass horses wide and slow, and NEVER on the inside. Leave at least a car's width where you can.
You might also see deer crossing your path, so always be careful as more from the same herd could be following behind them.
For help planning your journeys, have a look at our journey planner or cycle maps.
 Free running group launched for women
Running Places for Women is a free new weekly outdoor running group for women aged 16 or over, of all abilities, to build their confidence and fitness.
These sessions, led by the Places Leisure team and funded by us, offer a choice of route of either a 3km or 5km route.
Participants can also get a discount on refreshments at the Wokingham Leisure Centre café after a session.
Places Leisure is also matching our funding to launch a mixed-gender running group, which will take place on Wednesdays from 7.30am to 8.30am.
 And finally... stop me and buy one!
We were amazed at the creativity of staff at the Parsons Grange retirement home in Shinfield, who converted one of our electric cargo bikes into an ice cream bike.
The bike's currently on loan as part of a scheme we're trialling, and they gave it a temporary makeover as part of their staff appreciation week.
Could your business make use of a free trial of a cargo bike? If so, please contact us for more details.
 Regular activities and events
- FREE Balance Bike Club at FBC (Wednesdays)
- FREE Balance Bike Club at Woodford Park Leisure Centre (Thursdays)
- Learn to Ride sessions (£10) at FBC in Finchampstead (Wednesdays)
- Learn to Ride sessions (£10) at Woodford Park Leisure Centre in Woodley (Thursdays)
- Woky Wheels 4 All at FBC in Finchampstead (Thursday mornings)
- Bikeability Cycle Training Level 1 & 2 at Woodford Park Leisure Centre on 30 and 31 May 2024 (£20) - Book on Avanti Cycling's website.
- Adult Cycle Training Basic Skills (£22) on Wednesday, 5 June
- Adult Cycle Training for Beginners £11) on Saturday mornings
- Adult Cycle Training for Improvers (£11) on Saturday mornings
- FREE bike checks with Dr Bike at Lower Earley Library on Thursday, 30 May (between 9.30am to 11.30am - booking essential)
- FREE bike checks with Dr Bike at The Forest School, Winnersh on Thursday, 30 May (between 12pm to 2pm - booking essential)
- Father's Day Word Search Competition (entries to be sent by Friday, 7 June) you could win a cordless combi drill kindly donated by Wickes.
For more information on our regular cycle training and activities, visit our website.
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