What is Leicester Wheels for All, and what cycling sessions do you offer?
At Leicester Wheels for All, we manage a fleet of around 50 inclusive bikes and trikes. Our team regularly visits special needs schools, typically with three session leaders and a selection of about 12 trikes. During these school visits, we usually work with three different classes. Every child wears a helmet, and we provide tailored support depending on individual needs.
Some of the children we support have profound and complex needs. Thanks to a specially donated trike from Tomcat, we’re now able to include riders who require full head, chest, and trunk support—something we couldn’t previously offer on school visits due to equipment limitations. This has made a real difference to inclusion.
Others are more physically able, so we take a range of three-wheel trikes to suit different mobility levels and boost confidence. For wheelchair users, we bring the VeloPlus—an adapted bike with a wheelchair platform—so every child, regardless of ability, can experience the joy of cycling even if it means riding them around while they sit in their own wheelchair.
We also run a main community session every Wednesday morning in a Leicester park with an oval track. We use 3 wheelchair platform bikes, 2 side by side bikes and about 10 trikes including recumbent ones. This creates a fun and inclusive riding session open to the public. These sessions are incredibly popular—sometimes attracting over 150 participants in a single morning.
In addition, we operate a bike hub at an athletics track, running sessions on alternate Fridays and Sundays. Altogether, we deliver around 170 inclusive cycling sessions a year, all made accessible through donation-based contributions.
How will the donated trike be used in your sessions?
The trike donated by Tomcat is in excellent condition and will become our most valuable bike for children who need additional support. It’s especially well-suited for riders with complex needs, thanks to the head, chest, and trunk supports. Even better, these supportive pads can be transferred to other trikes, giving us greater flexibility across our sessions.
We’re genuinely delighted with the donation and looking forward to introducing it into our cycling programme. We know it will make a big difference—and we’ll be taking great care of it for many years to come.
How does this donation support your wider mission to make cycling accessible for all?
Because our sessions are open to the public, anyone can turn up and have a go—so having a versatile trike like this one is incredibly valuable. It’s adjustable enough to suit riders from around age 12 right through to adulthood, which makes it one of the most useable trikes in our fleet.
What makes this trike especially important is the level of built-in support. It’s the first one we have with a high backrest, headrest, and supportive footplates. It will be particularly beneficial for individuals with higher support needs, but because the supports can be removed, it’s equally suitable for more independent riders. That kind of flexibility is a game-changer for us.
