Recycle Your Cycle (RYC) has launched a new scheme to help UK charities make money from old bikes.  Recycle your Cycle encourages charities to collect unwanted bikes which are repaired and refurbished by local prison inmates.  The charity then sells on the refitted bike, including a six month warranty, making a profit of around £50 per bike.

The scheme is already being rolled out nationwide.  It enables charities to make money from bikes that would otherwise have found their way to the local tip, or gathered cobwebs in garden sheds.  RYC is rolling out the bicycle workshop scheme to HRM Prisons in Cardiff, Midlands and Manchester, allowing prisoners to develop useful skills, aid their rehabilitation and improve their job prospects on release.

Colette McKeaveney Director at Age Concern said, “We are getting behind this scheme because it’s environmentally friendly, it helps more people to afford to own a quality bike and allows us to raise significant money for our charity – a ‘win-win’ situation for everyone concerned.”

Bike shops and bike clubs are being encouraged to collect used bikes, which RYC will then collect, refurbish and pass to one of their approved charities.  Any organisation wishing to donate bicycles or new charities wanting to become a member should visit Recycle Your Cycle.