Publish date: 9 December 2020
Northumbria helps staff to get on their bikes this Christmas
Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust has launched an innovative scheme to help its staff get on their bikes this Christmas.
‘Recycle your cycle’ enables staff to donate bikes they no longer need or want which are then serviced by bike4health and available for colleagues to buy for them or a family member. There are no fixed prices instead staff are asked to ‘pay as they feel’ which means they can pay what they think the bike is worth or whatever they can afford, no questions asked.
It is part of the trust’s drive to improve staff’s health and wellbeing, encourage more sustainable travel and support local businesses. It also supports the promotion of physical activity which is a key component of Northumbria being named as one of only four Active Hospitals in the country.
Judith Stonebridge, consultant in public health at Northumbria Healthcare, said: “We want all of our staff and their families to have the means to be as active and as healthy as possible and we hope this scheme gives them the helping hand to get on their bikes this Christmas.
“We know that this year has been incredibly difficult for many families and, as a trust, we are committed to doing all we can to support our staff’s financial wellbeing as well as their physical and mental health.
“We’d like to thank the staff who have already donated bikes and all we ask is that if any of our staff are ever in a position to donate a bike in the future, they consider giving back to the scheme to continue to help our Northumbria family.”
David Buchan, from bike4health, said: “We’re delighted to be working with Northumbria Healthcare to help people reap the physical and emotional rewards of being out on two wheels which can be felt by the whole family.
“We’ve already had some fantastic bikes donated so far which we have serviced and would make great Christmas presents.”
As part of being an Active Hospital, the trust will further embed conversations about moving more as part of the everyday interactions staff have with patients and use the opportunity to support its staff to more active.