MERSEY HOSPITAL GETS ON BOARD FOR UK FIRST WITH MERSEYRAIL

A Liverpool Hospital made history on Monday 28 March 2011; by becoming the first in the UK to adopt its local train station.  University Hospital Aintree Board of Governors has taken the unique step of adopting Fazakerley Train station; the local Merseyrail station that is adjacent to the Longmoor Lane entrance of the hospital.

The adoption project is the first of its type in the country and will involve volunteers looking after areas of the station including the flower beds, artwork on the station and information in selected poster cases on the platform.

Spearheaded by Pamela Peel, Lead Governor, the project involves a group of volunteers from the Board of Governors, Foundation Trust members, staff and members of the local community working together to improve the look and feel of the station.

Local school children from Barlows Lane, Fazakerley and Holy Name Primary Schools, and Fazakerley High School have also developed artwork and planted flowers as part of the scheme.

Other station adoption and friends of schemes exist across the country. Merseyrail already has several stations including Old Roan, Maghull and Orrell Park that have successful station adoption projects. However, a hospital’s involvement is a somewhat different prospect altogether.

Lead Governor at Aintree, and Fazakerley resident Pam Peel said:- “The scheme is a great way for the hospital to make links with the local community; something I as both a Governor and a person living in this area have a strong interest in. Many patients and members of staff use the station, as do visitors so it seems a natural link to make between the local station and the Trust. It offers a great opportunity for us to promote hospital services as well as act as a good local citizen by promoting public transport to everyone that uses the hospital.”

The scheme is actively looking for volunteers to given their time to help the project. If you or someone you know who lives locally would like to find out more about the scheme, you can email them or call them on:- 0151 529 6474 for further details.

GOVERNMENT CASH BOOST FOR CYCLE TRAINING IN MERSEYSIDE SCHOOLS

MERSEYSIDE will retain its status as home of the largest schools’ cycle training scheme in the UK after being awarded £420,000 in government funding to continue its Bikeability programme.

The cash boost comes from the Department for Transport’s (DfT) dedicated cycle training fund and will ensure the continuation of Bikeability in Merseyside despite the abolition of Cycling England, the quango that established the scheme five years ago. It will ensure that schools can offer cycle training to an additional 10,500 Year 5 and 6 pupils from April 2011.

Since Bikeability replaced the defunct cycling proficiency test in 2006, 43,000 children have been through the scheme in Merseyside. Run locally through the Merseyside Transport Partnership’s TravelWise campaign, it enables pupils in Years 5 and 6 to take part in coaching sessions that suit their ability, starting with basic cycling and balancing skills and progressing to on-road training.

Neil Scales, Chair of Merseyside Transport Partnership, says:- “As the provision of a dedicated budget makes clear, encouraging more people to cycle more often is high on the government’s agenda. We have worked long and hard to promote the economic, environmental and health benefits of cycling in Merseyside, joining with a wide range of organisations to share knowledge and pool resources.   By clearly demonstrating our strong commitment to delivering cycling initiatives over the last few years, we are delighted to have attracted more funding to Merseyside. Continuing the Bikeability cycle training programme will enable us to continue to equip more children with the vital skills they need to cycle confidently and safely.”

Recent research by the DfT reports that the government's flagship training scheme for young cyclists is hugely popular with both children and parents, a sentiment echoed in a regional study² by MTP.

Neil adds:- “From our research it was clear that cycle training in schools not only benefits those children taking part, but the whole family. By incorporating cycling into everyday life the benefits are more likely to be long-term and these children are expected to continue to cycle as they move into secondary school.  Using active modes of transportation has major health benefits and it is also critical to reducing carbon in our cities. Cycling couldn’t be more important as we enter the Decade of Health & Wellbeing and we are looking to work with a range of organisations across the public, private and voluntary sectors to continue to encourage more people to cycle more regularly.”

For more information on cycling in Merseyside and to find out if your child’s school offers Bikeability training, please visit:- LetsTravelWise.org/cycling or call them on:- 0151 330 1253.