e-Bikes on prescription in new walking and cycling pilot in Cornwall

It will be trialling a walking and cycling service which will be available as a social prescription from GPs.

The aim of the new trial in Cornwall is to improve mental and physical health and reduce disparities across the country, the Department for Transport announced today.

The Government has awarded £12.7 million in multi-year funding to 11 local authority areas in England. The funding will go towards several pilot projects in each location, including adult cycle training, free bike loans and walking groups.

Cornwall will receive £844,641 for schemes including cycle training, loans of cycles and e-cycles, cycle repair and maintenance, mental health cycling and walking groups.

However, the government said the pilots must be delivered alongside improved infrastructure so people feel safe to cycle and walk.

Walking and Cycling Minister Trudy Harrison said: “Walking and cycling has so many benefits – from improving air quality in our communities to reducing congestion on our busiest streets.

“It also has an enormous positive impact on physical and mental health, which is why we have funded these projects which will get people across the country moving and ease the burden on our NHS.”

The 11 local authority areas that will trial social prescriptions are Bath and North East Somerset, Bradford, Cornwall, Cumbria, Doncaster, Gateshead, Leeds, Nottingham, Plymouth, Suffolk and Staffordshire.

The pilots, which were a commitment in the Government’s Gear Change Plan published in 2020, aim to evaluate the impact of cycling and walking on an individual’s health, such as reduced GP appointments and reliance on medication due to more physical activity.

For the first time, transport, active travel and health officials will work together towards a whole systems approach to health improvement and tackling health disparities.

The pilots will be delivered between 2022 and 2025 with on-going monitoring and evaluation to support continued learning