Bike shop boss says repairing cycles a 'lost skill'
Bicycle LinksThe boss of a bike shop and social enterprise that has been giving old and worn cycles a second life for 15 years said repairing them was a "lost skill".
Tim Guy, volunteer coordinator at Bicycle Links in Norwich, said it prided itself on being able to repair anything and everything, and wanted to encourage people to keep their bicycle instead of buying a new one.
Bicycle Links runs a workshop and its Welcome Wheels scheme, which has given 633 bikes to refugees and asylum seekers since 2018.
Guy said: "As a core value and how we originally set the project up in terms of recycling and the second-hand bikes, that has never really diminished."
Chris Goreham/BBCWith space for up to 150 bikes in its workshop, Guy said the King Street site had built a reputation as being a drop-off point in the city for cycles needing recycling.
He said: "We get really regular kind donations from people looking to clear their sheds out.
"Most of these would languish in people's gardens and sheds or go straight to the tip."
When dropped off, bikes are refurbished and either go into the shop for people to buy or are given away as part of its social enterprise project.
Guy said Bicycle Links can generally keep a tired bike going for a bit longer with repairs.
However, he said not everyone has the technical knowledge to repair a bike.
"We pride ourselves on being able to try and repair anything and everything and we are always encouraging people to keep the bicycle they've got, if they can," he said.
"There is a lost skill for repairing some of the more basic things like rebuilding wheels and working on the more complicated equipment."
However, when bikes cannot be overhauled the materials are recycled.
Chris Goreham/BBCMore from Norfolk:
Guy said as a city, Norwich is much easier and quicker to get around on with a bike, which gives people a "huge amount of social freedom".
As a social enterprise, Bicycle Links gives bikes to refugees and asylum seekers, children from disadvantaged backgrounds and job seekers.
He said: "People can get to work, to job interviews, they can get to college and education - it's a really liberating thing to have.
"With the refugees and asylum seekers with the Welcome Wheels project, it's about the access to friends and social gatherings.
"Norwich is a great city for getting across on a bike... a lot of these individuals would like to seek out their friends and family better, and giving them a bike is a great way to do that."
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