Scheme to distribute free bicycles to school age children: FOI release

Information requested

This is a FOI request relating to the Scottish Government’s scheme to distribute free bicycles to school age children who can’t afford them. Can you please answer the following questions:

1) Total cost of "Pilot"?

2) Total number of bikes supplied to children and a breakdown of how many bikes are distributed by local authority area?

3) Number of "pool bikes" supplied by Sustrans as part of Pilot?

4) Who supplied the bikes and what was the value of the contracts?

5) How were the bike recipients selected?

6) Is there a report on the pilot that has information on the results/positive outcomes that can be shared?

7) Are there any plans for the programme to be extended and if so what are the details?

8) Was the contract to supply the bikes awarded after a competitive tender process?

Response

Whilst it is our intention to provide information wherever possible. In this instance some of the information you requested is not held (exemption 17(1)). Where applicable, the reasons information is not held are set out below.

Some of the information you have requested is available from the independent pilot evaluation carried out by Research Scotland. This can be found here: Free Bikes for Schoolchildren Evaluation

Under section 25(1) of FOISA, we do not have to give you information which is already reasonably accessible to you. If, however, you do not have internet access to obtain this information from the website(s) listed, then please contact me again and I will send you a paper copy.

The answers to your questions are as follows:

1) The total cost of the pilot programme from August 2021 to March 2023 was £4,006,785,

2) The total number of bikes supplied during the pilot period (August-21 to March-23) was 3800. A breakdown of this number by local authority is not held as pilot projects were not asked to report this data.

3) Sustrans supplied 128 pool or fleet bikes across six locations during the pilot period.

4) This information is not held as pilot projects were not required to report this data. More information on the different models used by the pilots can be found in the Research Scotland evaluation.

5) Information on targeting and selection can be found in the Research Scotland evaluation.

6) See Research Scotland evaluation.

7) The findings from the independent evaluation informed the creation of the Free Bikes Partnership, led by Cycling Scotland, which was awarded £900,000 of grant funding to continue to develop access to bikes initiatives in 2023-24. In 2024-25, this work is being taken forward as part of the People and Place Programme, funded by Transport Scotland and led by Scotland's Regional Transport Partnerships.

8) The pilot projects followed multiple different approaches to procurement. More detail is available in the Research Scotland evaluation.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.