Highlights from the Bikeability Conference 2025!
Thank you to everyone who attended this year’s conference – discover our highlights below!
November 11, 2025
We want to say a huge thank you to everyone who attended this year’s Bikeability Conference! It was lovely to see so much collaboration and passion in the room as we swapped ideas and shared best practice around this year’s theme of ‘Quality’.
“The best Bikeability Conference yet! It was brilliant to bring everyone together to the ICC in Birmingham for a day focused on quality, sharing ideas, learning, and celebrating everything that makes Bikeability the best it can be.”
Emily Cherry, Bikeability CEO
What do we mean by ‘quality’?
The theme of ‘Quality’ focused on how we can elevate both delivery and operational standards across the Bikeability programme.
“This is not just about the numbers of children we train but making sure that we have got every child the best possible experience to learn cycling skills and then go out and cycle and walk the wheel in their community.”
Emily Cherry, Bikeability CEO.
It was inspiring to see guests and speakers share best practice in our workshop sessions and talks, allowing us all to safeguard the future of cycle training.
Sessions throughout the day explored practical ways to strengthen internal processes, improve assurance practices and celebrate excellence across the network. Sessions included speaker panels, workshops, collaborative discussions, and a Q and A with the trust.
Guest speakers
In the morning, we heard from an expert panel of guest speakers, who shared fascinating insights on the theme of “Combined authorities: Gearing Up on Active Travel”.
Hosted by Beccy Marston (West Midlands Active Travel Commissioner), our panellists were:
- Yo Higton, Active Travel Lead (Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority)
- Ed Clancy, Active Travel Commissioner (South Yorkshire)
- Ben Bost, Strategy and Policy Manager (Transport for London)
- Simon O’Brien, Active Travel Commissioner (Liverpool City Region)
- Rachel Scott, Active Travel Manager (Transport for Greater Manchester)
The panel answered a range of questions to give fascinating insights into how these combined authority areas are bringing that strategic support, infrastructure and behaviour change projects together to really increase walking and cycling in their areas.
It was energising to hear more about their plans for the future, including expanding cycle networks and lobbying government to make Bikeability a core part of the school curriculum.
“It’s not just about teaching children how to cycle. It’s about creating lifelong cyclists.”
Ed Clancy, Active Travel Commissioner (South Yorkshire)
Inspiring workshops
We hosted a variety of workshops throughout the day, including interactive collaborations between attendees. In the morning, we heard from David Sharpington of Surrey County Council, who spoke on “Elevating Bikeability delivery – Risk, REPPROC, and Quality”.
Afternoon sessions focused on strategies to increase instructor recruitment, develop a robust internal quality assurance programme, and practical tips to help grant recipients spend their full grant allocation. We heard from Matt Tallon (Bikeability Trust Quality Consultant), Kate Narbey and Emily Cooper (BCP Council), Sian Skelton and Sam Cartlidge (Telford & Wrekin Council), Hayley Roche and Richard Allman (Milton Keynes City Council), and Deborah Hall (Lancashire County Council).
A huge thank you do our guest speakers who shared their wisdom and insights for what works in their community. It sparked some great conversations amongst attendees and plenty of practical strategies to take away and put into practice. It’s all part of our four-year quality plan, building on shared standards, supporting instructors through mentoring and CPD, and creating a culture of continuous improvement right across the industry.
“The energy, insight and passion that came through at the conference were truly inspiring, and it was wonderful to see the vision for Bikeability being shared so clearly and confidently. We were given lots of ideas to take back and try within our scheme.”
Essex County Council
What’s next?
This year’s conference gave us a lot to think about and reflect on. We’ve heard that you want more stability, more communication around funding, and more support engaging parents and schools with the programme. So, what’s next?
We’ll be looking at the results of the industry surveys we shared in September and the feedback from this year’s conference to guide our next steps, starting with a re-launch of the Bikeability Experts Advisory Group – to be rebranded as the Quality Advisory Group.
We will be asking for people to put themselves forwards and want to get representation from GRs, TPS, Instructors as well as other industry experts. It’s all part of our four-year quality plan, building on shared standards, supporting instructors through mentoring and CPD, and creating a culture of continuous improvement right across the industry.
We were delighted to see so much genuine passion and drive in the room, and we are so grateful for the valuable work that you do – we couldn’t do it without you! Keep an eye on our industry newsletters to be notified about tickets for next year’s conference.
