Bike Hub update
15 Jul 2008

Bike Hub has raised over £2 million

Since the Bike Hub Levy Scheme started at the end of 2004, contributions from suppliers and retailers have totalled £1.13 million; thanks to matching grants from the Government (Dept. for Transport), the grand total has reached £2.058 million by the end of March 2008.

This is a truly fantastic achievement, and the Committee wishes to thank every one for their continued support. Every £1 in a £1000 really does add up!

New Committee for Bike Hub Management

At the start of 2008, the BA and the ACT together formed a new Committee to manage the Fund and oversee its progress.

Andy Shrimpton, Cycle Heaven - representing ACT
Chris Compton, Compton Cycles - representing ACT
Nigel Hill, Sidcup Cycles - representing ACT
Will Fripp - Madison
Richard Allmark - Fisher Outdoor Leisure
Julie Ellison - Zyro
John Moore - Moore Large
Phillip Darnton - Cycling England / Bicycle Association and Committee chair

The Committee is responsible for:

ensuring the financial probity of the budget and accounts
confirming the guidelines for fund contributions
reviewing the equity of the scheme, in terms of the fairness of individuals' contributions
considering the best schemes for investment of funds
examining the most appropriate structure for Bike Hub to ensure its longer-term security

Please contact any of the above with your questions, suggestions or comments.

Bike Hub Finances

The full report of the annual income and expenditure is available, along with a list of all supplier contributors on request.

A summary of the accounts is published annually in the Report and Accounts for the Bicycle Association.

At the end of March 2008, the Fund has a small credit balance of c.£30,000 after all investments are paid up-to-date.

In 2008, the Bike Hub invests in:

Bike It for Schools - £250,000 pa
Bike Week June 2008 - £30,000 pa
Bikeforall.net - £ 16,000 pa

Bike Hub Contributions

To ensure that all contributors can see the impact of their payments to the Levy Scheme, the Committee will receive a quarterly report from the auditors indicating the % contribution submitted by each supplier; which will of course include matching retailer contributions. This data will also be available on request to all contributors.

The Committee has agreed to clarify the basis on which contributors' payments should be made to the Bike Hub fund, as follows:

For every 0.1% levy payment invoiced and received from retail customers, the supplier will be required to make a matching 0.1% contribution. Contributions should be sent quarterly by collecting suppliers to the independent auditors, Dafferns.

For those retail customers who do not make any contribution, eg mail order; supermarkets, the supplier is not required to make a payment.

The Committee will be contacting those suppliers who are not presently contributing to Bike Hub to inform them of the basis for contributions - in the hope that some new companies will now participate.

Update on Bike Hub investments

Bike It

Sustrans has produced a report on progress with the Bike It project and this has been circulated to most contributors. If you have not seen a copy - or would like extra copies - please let us know.

The number of Bike It officers, which started with Bike Hub funding with just 4 people, has now risen to 30 full-time professionals this year. They work with well over 300 schools every year, benefiting 60,000 children and their families. The Government will fund a further increase in Bike It officers over the next 12 months. The aim is to have at least 9 full-time people in each region of England - 80 in total by 2010 - bringing cycling to over 1000 schools a year.

Bike It is now extending to Wales with 2 new officers being appointed. Sustrans is exploring opportunities to extend the project to Scotland and Northern Ireland in the next 12 months.

The Committee is considering ways to raise the profile of independent cycle retailers in any future Bike Hub sponsored cycling development initiatives.

They are waiting for new proposals to be put forward to create National Bike It Awards to celebrate schools' success in increasing levels of cycling and also an Industry Charter Mark for the participating retailers. More news on this soon. There will also be much more marketing support and communication for all those who contribute to Bike Hub.

Bikeforall.net

This website receives up to 30,000 visits per month; however its role has been overtaken by a number of alternative and similar sites. The Committee is reviewing how best to use the site in future; any suggestions from contributors are welcome.

Bike Week 2008

Bike Week took place in June this year. The event received a substantial financial boost from the participation of Nokia, the mobile phone company. They launched their Sports Tracker system as part of Bike Week, giving much greater support to the week's events, with a good publicity programme across the whole country.

The new Committee is currently reviewing all three schemes, as well as investigating future opportunities for developments.

A Big Thank You

The whole Committee thanks every contributor to Bike Hub for the vital part which each is playing in funding the future of cycling. Your contribution really makes a difference, and enables thousands of children every year to learn to ride their bikes safely and well; have a lot of fun, and become the cyclists of the next generation.

We hope that you are pleased with the latest developments and will continue to support Bike Hub, so that more and more schools, parents and children can make cycling a real part of their everyday lives.

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