Advice on starting work-place cycling interest group.

[alp1950]

I plan to form a cycling interest group at work.

Remarkably, despite being one of the major healthcare organisations in Scotland, NHS Lanarkshire has done nothing to promote cycling and has failed to sign up for Cycle to Work. An exchange of emails on the subject with a senior manager resulted in nothing more productive than an aggrieved response that the organisation offers reduced cost membership of a local gym.

I've no idea how many cyclists, or potential cyclists there will be to support an interest/lobby group, but I assume that an organisation as big as NHS Lanarkshire will have a reasonable number.

Looking for advice on issues that the interest group might pursue. Obvious areas include: C2W; changing facilities, showers and lockers; bike storeage. Perhaps cyclecraft training. Social activities might include charity runs/training towards specific events.

Anything else worth considering? What are other people's experiences of work-place interest groups?

 

[magnatom]

I plan to form a cycling interest group at work.

Remarkably, despite being one of the major healthcare organisations in Scotland, NHS Lanarkshire has done nothing to promote cycling and has failed to sign up for Cycle to Work. An exchange of emails on the subject with a senior manager resulted in nothing more productive than an aggrieved response that the organisation offers reduced cost membership of a local gym.

I've no idea how many cyclists, or potential cyclists there will be to support an interest/lobby group, but I assume that an organisation as big as NHS Lanarkshire will have a reasonable number.

Looking for advice on issues that the interest group might pursue. Obvious areas include: C2W; changing facilities, showers and lockers; bike storeage. Perhaps cyclecraft training. Social activities might include charity runs/training towards specific events.

Anything else worth considering? What are other people's experiences of work-place interest groups?

I'm surprised that NHS Lanarkshire is not in the cycle to work scheme, we are in Glasgow. Have you pointed out this discrepancy to your managers?

 

[alp1950]

Yes this has been pointed out.

Even North Lanarkshire council is in cycle to work, but not NHS Lanarkshire.

I don't doubt that they will be shamed into signing up if there is enough of a lobby from inside the organisation.

 

[magnatom]

Crazy. From an organisation that is suppose to promote health.

Good luck with the interest group.

 

[PBancroft]

Crazy. From an organisation that is suppose to promote health.

Good luck with the interest group.

Last time I went to the doctors, I was struck by how many overweight staff they had... and how many were taking a quick cigarette break.

I was left with the impression that the NHS is a "do as we say, not as we do" organisation. Good luck with the advocacy group.

 

[Amanda P]

Whether it's officially recognized or not, there's nothing stopping you from contacting other people. So why not start by preaching to the converted - other folk like you who are already cycling to work? So put flyers on their bikes (just staple slips of paper around cables or top tubes), and put up notices on notice boards.

This might attract one or two like-minded people - just to make contact with interested people will help you, and you might find someone who's thinking along the same lines. Next step might be a meeting somewhere. If you're getting no support from NHS, why not hold it in a pub?

Let us know how you get on.

 

[jonesy]

One immediately useful thing you can do is to start to put some recommended cycle routes onto Google maps. You can do this collaboratively with a few other regular cyclists and hence provide something that potential new cyclists will find very helpful.

 

[alecstilleyedye]

where i work we have a changing room, showers, bike shed (with on-site security). we are also at least a mile from any town/village. several of us ride to work (more since petrol prices headed skyward), but the company won't provide a bike to work scheme because of "health and safety" (the road we're on is deemed too dangerous except for those cyclists among us who "know what you're doing"). disappointing to say the least.

 

[ufkacbln]

There is actualy an NHS Cycling Network

Some useful info and links. Great thing is that it is a fromal NHS Network - so your Trust should comply!

 

[alp1950]

There is actualy an NHS Cycling Network

Some useful info and links. Great thing is that it is a fromal NHS Network - so your Trust should comply!

Thanks! Great link that I will follow up.

Scottish NHS is more or less independent of England & Wales however so it is less likely that our Trust will feel the need to comply. Nevertheless very useful link and armed with this type of information I think that we will be successful persuading our Trust to go adopt C2W.