A CYCLE shop has come to the rescue of a young apprentice who had his bike stolen from outside the homeless hostel where he lives.

William Wardlow, 20, had been using the bike to attend training courses and was about to embark on a construction apprenticeship when it was stolen from outside the Centrepoint hostel in Shipley.

The youth homelessness charity, which supports more than 300 young people across the Bradford district, appealed to All Terrain Cycles based at Salts Mill and the store has given a bike to Mr Wardlow, allowing him to forge ahead with his new career.

Mr Wardlow, who has been staying with Centrepoint for six months, said he had lost his “most precious belonging” after the bike was stolen, fearing it would mean he could not get to and from his new-found apprenticeship.

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"When my bike was stolen I was really down, really depressed," he said.

"It was a gift from my family so it had a lot of sentimental value.

"I owe All Terrain Cycles all the thanks in the world to be honest.

"I’m really excited to have a mode of transport again and the freedom to go places.

"Construction is something I’ve been interested in for a while and now I have the means to get to my apprenticeship and pursue it."

As well as providing a safe place for young people to call home, Centrepoint also supports its residents in gaining essential life skills, giving opportunities to move into education or employment.

Sam Temple, the floating support officer at Centrepoint who contacted All Terrain Cycles, said: "When staff realised the following morning that William’s bike had been stolen, we went through the CCTV cameras and watched the robbery taking place.

"It took the two men approximately 20 minutes to break the lock and steal William’s most precious personal belonging.

"We can’t thank All Terrain enough.

"The loss of his bike had a devastating effect on William, but hopefully this will have restored his faith in human kindness."

Dating back to 1907, All Terrain Cycles is said to be the oldest cycling business in Yorkshire, and the firm plays an active part in supporting the region’s cycling fraternity, sponsoring a number of charity events as well as having its own race team.

Managing director Tony Booth said: "William is obviously a keen cyclist and really needs his bike in his daily life so we were happy to be able to help.

"We wish him well with his apprenticeship."