Snodland Town Council awarded £43,500 grant by British Cycling to help fund pump track
10:54, 19 April 2021
updated: 11:19, 19 April 2021
A project to create a new cycle “pump track” which it is hoped will help prevent anti-social riding has moved a step closer after a funding boost.
Snodland Town Council has been awarded a grant for £43,500 for Snodland Pump Track, a circuit of rollers, banked turns and features designed to be ridden by "pumping" a bike, after a successful application to British Cycling’s Places to Ride fund.
The figure is in addition to the £45,000 already raised by the council, Snodland Partnership and Clarion Futures, the charitable foundation of Clarion Housing Group.
It means a top-class facility is on its way to Snodland, which will be based at the community centre in Paddlesworth Road.
Community Cycleworks, a local community interest company who specialise in youth biking projects, hope to start work to build the track in the autumn following public consultations on what the track layout should look like later this summer.
They were approached by Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council and Kent Police in 2019 after multiple reports of anti-social biking in the area.
They found most of these young riders just wanted somewhere to practise their skills away from public roads.
“We are excited and proud about the announcement of our successful award of match funding,” said Stewart Vanns, founder of Community Cycleworks.
“What started as a project to engage young riders will see them take an active role in the design of the track.
“This will create something positive out of the coronavirus pandemic: a place where people can enjoy fun, physical activity each day.”
The project has received plenty of backing.
Tracey Crouch, MP for Chatham and Aylesford, said: “This is a much-needed project that is being done in conjunction with younger members of the bike community to provide a track, where there is currently nothing.
“The team behind the bid deserve huge credit for identifying the need, proposing a solution, and successfully bidding for funding.
"This will create something positive out of the coronavirus pandemic..."
“It will be a fantastic asset for Snodland and the surrounding communities.”
Chief executive of Snodland Town Council, Karen Sowten, said: “Snodland Town Council are absolutely delighted that £43,500 has been successfully awarded for this amazing and exciting project.
“This project would not have happened had it not been for the hard work and determination of the Steering Group (made up of Community Cycleworks, Snodland Town Council and Tonbridge and Malling Borough Council).”
“This is a great good news story to come out of the pandemic and we look forward to seeing the Pump Track up-and-running,” she added.
The facility won’t just be for teenagers, however, and will provide a free, open-access cycle track for children and adults alike, and will be an asset for the whole of the local community.
Gillingham is home to a similar pump track.
