A CHARITY which recycles old and unwanted bicycles continues to go from strength-to-strength.

The Margaret Carey Foundation (MCF), based in Wilsden, takes scrapped bicycles and wheelchairs which are no longer in use and sets up workshops where they are cleaned and repaired.

The charity offers bike and wheelchair maintenance workshops in both prisons and in the community in the north of England and Nottingham.

Once they are refurbished, some of the bikes and wheelchairs are handed out to communities in need, in the UK and in developing countries, with some of them being sold to raise funds for the charity.

The charity was further boosted after a group of students at Titus Salt School in Baildon held an event for people to donate their old, unwanted bikes on Saturday.

The students organised the event as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Award work. To achieve the scheme’s bronze award they must complete a volunteer project.

Helen Rowlands, development manager at MCF, said: “We have a constant need for unwanted bikes and bike parts to keep our workshops supplied.

“It doesn’t matter what condition the bike is in, it can still be repaired and refurbished or used for parts in one of our workshops.

“We were delighted to get involved with the Duke of Edinburgh students at Titus Salt School.

“Rather than putting it in a skip we would ask people to bring their old bikes along to the school collection instead.”

The students’ project is the latest scheme to benefit MCF.

Children living in Shipley and the surrounding area will now also be able to ride a bike for free following the opening of a new Yorkshire Bank Bike Library.

The bike library has opened by the charity at its Shipley Bikery in Manor Lane and will offer free bike loans for children and families, as well as bike safety advice, affordable bike repairs, servicing, and led rides.

Old or unwanted bikes can also be donated at the library.

The bike library scheme, one of several set up across West Yorkshire, is sponsored by Yorkshire Bank and run alongside tourism group Welcome to Yorkshire’s Cycle Yorkshire scheme.

Anyone who has an old bike or bike parts to donate to MCF should call the charity on 01535 275530.

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