TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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Your school’s hands-o
n guide to coordinatin
action packed walkin g an
g and cycling activity
week
T O O L K I T
TO O L K I T
About Sustrans
Sustrans makes smarter travel choices possible, desirable and
inevitable. We’re a leading UK charity enabling people to travel by
foot, bike or public transport for more of the journeys we make
every day. We work with families, communities, policy-makers and
partner organisations so that people are able to choose healthier,
cleaner and cheaper journeys, with better places and spaces to
move through and live in.
It’s time we all began making smarter travel choices. Make your
move and support Sustrans today. www.sustrans.org.uk
Sustrans Cymru
123 Bute Street
Cardiff Bay
Cardiff
CF10 5AE
Head Office
Sustrans
2 Cathedral Square
College Green
Bristol
BS1 5DD
© Sustrans June 2011
Registered Charity No. 326550 (England and Wales) SCO39263 (Scotland)
VAT Registration No. 416740656
2 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011
Table of contents
Lush Hour Activity Week
Introduction 04
Activity Key 04
Benefits to Schools of Promoting Active Travel 06
Case Studies: School Information 07
Activity Descriptions
Lush Hour Breakfast 08
Lush Hour Non-Uniform Day 10
BMX Try Outs 12
Lush Hour Assembly 14
Lush Hour Olympics 15
Bike-Powered Smoothie Maker 18
Dr. Bike 20
Treasure Hunt 22
Bike Bands 24
Lush Hour Raffle 26
Film: Street Trials Pro Rider and ‘The Race to School’ 28
Bike Hockey 30
Flag Tag 32
Photography Competition 34
Bike Shop and Gadgets Demonstration 36
Puncture Race 38
Additional Lush Hour Activity Suggestions 40
Evaluating the Impact of Lush Hour Activity Week 41
Index of Appendices 42
Appendix 1 – Template Press Release 43
Appendix 2 – Template Letter (Prizes) 44
Appendix 3 – Lush Hour Promotional Materials 45
Appendix 4 – Template Letter (Lush Hour Breakfast) 46
Appendix 5 – Lush Hour Breakfast Risk Assessment 47
Appendix 6 – Template Score Sheet for BMX Try Outs 49
Appendix 7 – Cycling Activities Risk Assessment 50
Appendix 8 – Assembly Presentation Ideas 52
Appendix 9 – Example Lush Hour Activity Week Timetables 58
Appendix 10 – Bicycle Gears Explanation 61
Appendix 11 – Description of Lush Hour Obstacle Course Activities 62
Appendix 12 – Template Letter (Smoothie Maker) 63
Appendix 13 – Risk Assessment for Bike Powered Smoothie Maker activity 64
Appendix 14 – Template Letter (Dr. Bike) 66
Appendix 15 – Treasure Hunt Clues Template 67
Appendix 16 – Bike-Bands and Puncture Repair Activities Risk Assessment 71
Appendix 17 – Instructions for Making Flag-Tags 72
Appendix 18 – Pre- and Post- Lush Hour Activity Week Questionnaire 73
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 3
Lush Hour Activity Week
Activity Key
Time taken to coordinate activity
Specialist equipment needed?
Introduction
This briefing provides an overview of the activities Suitable for indoors coordination?
developed during the trial of Lush Hour Activity
Week. Each of the activities outlined was developed
and trialled as part of the Sustrans School Travel Number of pupils that can get involved
Project, a pilot project aimed at encouraging more
secondary school pupils to cycle and walk to
school. Instructions for the coordination of each
Number of supervisors needed
activity are provided, along with guidance for the
£
number of supervisors and the equipment needed1.
In addition, a full risk assessment2 has been
££
carried out for each of the activities described. Does this activity need bikes?
These, along with additional tools you may find
useful in coordinating the activities, can be found in
the appendices.
£ Potential costs involved
(although please note suggestions are
provided for how sponsorship can be sought
The activities are listed in order of their popularity, to help cover these costs)
both indicated by pupils who worked with us during
the development and trial of Lush Hour Activity Throughout the design and delivery of the Sustrans
Week and by the participation rates at each of the School Travel Project, we have looked to encourage
schools which trialled these activities. However each
£
pupil participation in decision making wherever
school is encouraged to select the activities it would possible. To further support this pupil-led approach,
like to coordinate based on the individual needs and each activity description includes a number of
£
interests of the pupil population. To assist in this, a questions that could be considered by pupils
quick reference guide is provided at the top of each interested in taking a leadership role in the
activity description. coordination of Lush Hour Activity Week.
4 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011
Prior to the delivery of Lush Hour Activity Week, you coordinated by a member of Sustrans staff they
may also wish to consider the following: may be able to provide these prizes. If you are
coordinating Lush Hour Activity Week
• Press: You may wish to gain press coverage of independently of Sustrans you may wish to appeal
Lush Hour Activity Week taking place in your to local businesses to provide these prizes. Please
school. In certain circumstances, Sustrans will be see Appendix 2 for a template letter which you
able to provide some support in this. However, may find useful for approaching businesses with
please find a template press release in Appendix this request. NB: The most popular prizes offered
1 which you can adapt and use to draft your own during the trial of Lush Hour Activity Week were
press release for the event. The likelihood of reflective wrist and ankle bands. These can be
receiving media coverage would also be greatly purchased from the Sustrans website
increased if pupils involved contact local media www.sustransshop.co.uk/products/5409-
outlets themselves. sustrans-reflective-ankle-band.
• Invitation to local representative: Inviting a local • Promotional materials: If you would like to use
councillor, council official, MP or Assembly Lush Hour promotional materials (Appendix 3)
Member helps to raise awareness of the please contact Sustrans Cymru (Tel: 029 2065
importance of encouraging active travel in schools 0602) for posters, plasma screen backdrops,
amongst key decision makers. However, a banners and timetables featuring the Lush Hour
suitable event/photo opportunity should be brand.
discussed prior to contact being made. Again, the
1
Where specialist equipment is needed to coordinate the activity,
likelihood of a local representative attending an suggestions have been made for stockists previously used by
event will be greatly increased if pupils involved Sustrans. However, where these stockists are external suppliers,
please note that Sustrans bears no responsibility for the quality of the
contact them directly. goods or services supplied.
2
Please note, these risk assessments are provided as a guide only and
should be reviewed before coordinating the activity at your school,
• Prizes: Prizes can encourage greater participation taking site specific details into consideration and noting any additional
actions to undertake.
by pupils. If your Lush Hour Activity Week is being
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 5
7 Benefits to Estyn Common Inspection Framework
Schools of Promoting
Active Travel
2
Active travel initiatives can support schools to
demonstrate that pupils “have a secure understanding
of how they can become healthy, both through what
they eat and the physical activity they undertake.”
Encouraging pupils to cycle and walk to school
enables the development of positive attitudes towards
physically active pursuits, that research has shown
1
Seven Core Aims for Children and continue through into adulthood.
Young People:
Aim 1 - A flying start in life: The proven
cognitive and physiological benefits Education for
demonstrate how walking, cycling and active School Travel Plans Sustainable
play can contribute towards giving children the Development and
best possible start in life. Writing a School Travel Global Citizenship
Plan is the only way (ESDGC)
36
Aim 2 - A comprehensive range of schools can access some
education, training and learning of the funding available for Delivering ESDGC
opportunities: Active travel initiatives offer a active travel infrastructure through active travel
method of school transport that enables young (such as bicycle storage initiatives enables
people to engage with their community whilst facilities), including Safe pupils to see how
supporting them to achieve their full academic Routes in Communities actions they take at a
potential. Funding. local level (i.e. walking
and cycling to school)
Aim 3 - The best possible health, free from School Travel Plans should can have positive
abuse, victimisation and exploitation: be designed to reduce car impacts globally.
Encouraging the development of habitual dependency and increase Sustrans’ curriculum
behaviours, such as walking and cycling for levels of walking and resources (available for
short journeys, is an effective way for young cycling. both KS2 and KS3)
people to achieve the recommended daily involve and engage
levels of physical activity. young people in their
own learning, assisting
Aim 4 - Access to play, leisure, sporting and teachers in
cultural activities: For children there is no clear Healthy Schools demonstrating the
4
distinction between play and active travel. The links between their
majority of time spent outdoors involves Two of the seven health pupils’ lives and those
children moving around the whole of their topics required in the of people throughout
outdoor environment and playing en route. Welsh Network of the world.
Healthy School Schemes
Aim 5 - Ensuring children are listened to, National Quality Award
treated with respect and have their race and relate directly to active
cultural identity recognised: To fully travel: Food & Fitness
appreciate children and young people’s specific and Environment.
needs in terms of travel and transport the
Eco Schools
involvement of children and young people is
In the formal review
vital.
framework for
School Effectiveness schools applying for
Aim 6 - A safe home and community that
Framework (SEF) their Eco-Schools
7
supports physical and emotional wellbeing:
Award, transport
People living in walkable, mixed use
Intervention and Support - policies are
5
neighbourhoods have higher levels of social
School: Adopting a whole assessed based on
capital compared with those living in car-
school approach and involving a number of
oriented suburbs.
local authority representatives measures, including
and external partners in the whether schemes
Aim 7 - Ensuring no child or young person is
delivery of active travel to increase the
disadvantaged by poverty: Through
initiatives will not only number of pupils
supporting educational and health outcomes for
demonstrate tri-level action and walking and cycling
children, active travel initiatives help break the
multi-agency engagement but to school have
cycle of poverty.
will also ensure positive become “a regular
outcomes for pupils involved. part of school life”.
6 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011
Case Studies: School Information
Four schools across Wales trialled the activities outlined in this toolkit and case studies are provided where a
school trialling Lush Hour Activity Week adopted a particularly successful approach. Please find below a brief
introduction to each of the four schools involved.
Activity Week was formed of breaktime
and lunchtime activities aimed primarily at
pupils in Years 7 – 9, with sixth formers
at the school assisting in the coordination
of activities. Due to the large catchment
area of the school and the inherent
difficulties for some pupils in cycling to
school, ten pool bikes were requested to
be made available by Sustrans over the
course of the week. This approach had
the advantage of enabling all pupils to
Tasker Milward Voluntary These two sites were combined and, in
take part in activities however it also
Controlled School, September 2008, the new school
meant there was less of an incentive for
Haverfordwest: opened. Pupils attending Maesteg
pupils to cycle to school. In total, the
Tasker Milward is an 11-18 mixed School live in Maesteg and its
number of individual participations was
comprehensive school situated in surrounding districts in the Llynfi Valley.
1,659.
Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire. It was Lush Hour Activity Week was aimed
the first school to trial Lush Hour Activity primarily at pupils in Years 7 – 9, taking
Week and was also the only school that place during lunch and breaktimes as
trialled Lush Hour Activity Week without well as a number of after school activities
having had previous engagement with being coordinated. Sixth formers at the
the project (the other schools had each school who had been involved in the
nominated a pupil steering group to help development of the Lush Hour brand
develop the activities and materials used also helped considerably in the
in Lush Hour Activity Week. The coordination and supervision of activities.
activities, which took place during The number of individual participations
lunchtimes and breaktimes, were aimed totalled 2,586.
at pupils in Years 7 -9 only, however St Cenydd Comprehensive
Tasker Milward was also keen to School, Trecenydd:
encourage Year 10 pupils in the St Cenydd School is an 11-18
coordination of these activities and used Community School in Caerphilly County
a PSE day in the weeks leading up to the Borough. St Cenydd School has been
event to support Year 10 pupils to adopt the beneficiary of significant Safe Routes
a leadership role. For more information in Communities (formerly Safe Routes to
on this approach please see the Lush Schools) funding, which will be
Hour Assembly activity description. The completed in 2012. However, the school
number of individual participations currently has no cycle storage facilities.
(defined as the total number of pupils Lush Hour Activity Week was
engaged in a particular activity, without Bishop of Llandaff Church in
coordinated as part of a wider
deducting for overlap caused by pupils Wales High School, Cardiff:
Sustainability Week in the school. The
participating in more than one activity, or The Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales
project worked only with Year 7 pupils
in one activity multiple times) totalled High School is a co-educational 11-18
but was allowed to coordinate activities
1,520 over the course of the week (with school. The school has a large
during lesson time; as a result all 200
an additional 200 participations prior to catchment area, serving the city of Cardiff
pupils had the opportunity to take part in
Lush Hour Activity Week). and the Vale of Glamorgan, with a
a Lush Hour Activity Week in groups of
number of pupils also travelling from the
between 40 and 60 pupils. The one opt-
Maesteg Comprehensive School, Bridgend and Pontypridd areas. The
in activity (the Lush Hour Breakfast)
school is currently undergoing major
Maesteg: proved highly popular, with over 120
building works; this construction project
Maesteg Comprehensive School is an pupils (out of a possible 200) claiming
is leading to a loss of onsite car-parking
11-18 co-educational school maintained their free breakfast for walking or cycling
spaces and as a result the school is keen
by Bridgend County Borough Council. to school that morning.
to encourage more pupils to cycle and
Until September 2008 the school
walk to school to help overcome the
operated on two sites (Lower and Upper
congestion experienced in the
School) which were two miles apart.
surrounding residential area. Lush Hour
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 7
Activity Descriptions
Lush Hour Breakfast
1hr No Yes 100+ 6+ No
£ £100+
£
£
£ £
£ £
The most popular of all the activities, this event coordinated on the first day of Lush Hour Activity Week
offers pupils who have walked and cycled to school to allow pupils an opportunity to remember that they
that day a free breakfast. need to walk or cycle to school that day.
Activity Description Costs Involved
A typical breakfast would be cereal bars, yoghurt and There will be costs incurred by this activity. There are
fruit. However, if you would like to provide a hot three options for how these costs could be covered:
breakfast, canteen facilities will need to be available • If your Lush Hour Activity Week is being coordinated
before school. by a Sustrans member of staff, there may be funds
available to cover all or part of the costs
Lush Hour Breakfasts are best run outside in good • Fundraise for the Lush Hour Breakfast or use school
weather, however they can be run inside if the weather funds to cover the costs
is poor. You’ll need a table large enough to seat at least • Appeal to local businesses (in particular local
50 pupils, ideally near the bike shed but certainly in a supermarkets) to provide the food needed in return for
prominent position. Balloons or flags can be added if some promotion at the event (and in local press).
you want to make it look really special. Please find a template that can be used to assist you
in composing this letter in Appendix 4
The table should be set up and food laid out half an • Ask pupils attending the breakfast to make a
hour before school starts. Easy-to-eat food that can be contribution towards the cost of the food provided
eaten out of a napkin will negate the need to hand out
plates or cutlery. Alternatively, you may be able to coordinate the Lush
Hour Breakfast activity as part of an existing Breakfast
Time Club at your school.
This is a before school activity. It can be held on any day
of the week, however it is suggested that this is not
8 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011
Support Needed Coordinator to offer a free cooked breakfast to all pupils
A minimum of six members of staff/pupil supervisors will who walked and cycled to school on the last day of Lush
be needed to help assist the event. Hour Activity Week, which nearly 100 pupils took
advantage of. An agreement was formed with catering
Two members of staff/pupil supervisors should be based staff that all pupils with their Lush Hour hand stamp were
at entrances to the school, handing out raffle tickets or entitled to a free breakfast up to the value of £1 (which
stamping the hands of pupils who have cycled or walked was then reimbursed by Sustrans). A partnership was
to school that morning. These hand stamps/raffle tickets also formed that week with a local Tesco representative
will entitle the pupil to have their free breakfast. to offer this breakfast in the future with the store
providing the food for free.
Four members of staff/pupil supervisors will be needed to
help dispense the breakfast (if there is not an existing St Cenydd Comprehensive School
Breakfast Club at your school). In order for pupils to claim their free Lush Hour Breakfast,
they needed to collect at least one raffle ticket over the
Opportunities for Student Leadership course of three days. The school champion based at St
Suggested student group: Healthy Schools Committee Cenydd Comprehensive School opted to stand at the
• Would you like to invite parents to attend the breakfast? school gates himself, handing out raffle tickets each
• What food should be on offer? Do you want to offer morning to those pupils who arrived on foot or by bike.
drinks too? This achieved exceptional results, with 60 pupils claiming
• Once you have decided on the food offer, would you their raffle ticket on day one, 105 pupils on day two and
like to contact a local shop to ask them to provide some 120 pupils on day three (the day the Lush Hour Breakfast
of the food needed in return for some promotion at the was held). A table was set up in a courtyard at the school;
event (and in the local press)? Please find a template yoghurt, fruit juice and a flapjack/cake were offered to
that can be used to assist you in composing this letter pupils. If pupils had two/more raffle tickets (demonstrating
in Appendix 4. they had walked or cycled to school two or more days
• What day of the week would you like to hold the that week) they were allowed an extra flapjack/cake.
breakfast? Pupils were then stamped with the Lush Hour hand
• Would you like to run any activities during the breakfast? stamp once they had collected their breakfast (to avoid
For example, if you hold the breakfast on the last day of any pupils trying to claim their free breakfast twice!)
Lush Hour Activity Week, this could also be when the
Lush Hour Raffle takes place (see later in the document
for a description of this activity) or when the “Lush Hour Activity Week ticks so
photography competition winner is voted
many boxes for us, including
on/announced.
• Would you like to be responsible for dispensing the supporting the school to
breakfast? This would reduce the number of staff demonstrate how we are
needed to help coordinate the event. contributing towards pupil well-
• Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all participants
taking part in this activity (see Lush Hour Raffle activity
being for our Estyn inspection next
description for more information)? year and supporting our application
for an Eco Schools Green Flag
For a risk assessment of this activity please see
award. But more than that, the
Appendix 5.
activities were fun for the pupils to
Maesteg Comprehensive School take part in and really helped raise
Maesteg School already offered wrap-around care to the profile of the benefits of walking
pupils at the school, including both before and after
school activities. The after school service enabled the
and cycling to school.”
Sustrans Project Coordinator to coordinate several out- Andrew Morris,
of-hours activities in the early evening; the before school Lush Hour School Champion, St Cenydd School
service (a breakfast club) enabled the Sustrans Project
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 9
Activity Descriptions
Lush Hour Non-Uniform Day
1 day No Yes 100+ 2 No
£ £0
£
£
£ £
£ £
Activity Description Opportunities for Student Leadership
Pupils who have cycled or walked to school are given the • On what day would you like this activity to take place?
opportunity to not wear school uniform for one day • Should this activity be open to all pupils who have
during Lush Hour Activity Week. travelled sustainably to school that day (i.e. allowing
pupils who have taken the bus to school to wear non-
Time uniform)?
All day. This activity can be held on any day of the week, • Do you want to set a fancy-dress theme for the pupils
however it is suggested that this is not coordinated on not wearing school uniform?
the first day to allow pupils an opportunity to remember • Would you like to use this as a fundraising opportunity
that they need to walk or cycle to school that day in to raise money for bike storage facilities at your school?
order to not wear school uniform. If so, perhaps consider inviting all pupils at the school
to take part in the non-school uniform day (including
Costs Involved those who have not walked or cycled to school). You
There are no costs involved in this activity. could then ask all pupils for a voluntary contribution
and the money raised can be used to fund the
Support Needed purchase of equipment such as bicycle shelters or
A minimum of two members of staff/pupil supervisors will helmet lockers.
be needed on the morning of the non-school uniform day
to ensure only pupils who have walked or cycled to
school are wearing non-school uniform. Each pupil who
has walked or cycled to school should have their hand
stamped to demonstrate that they have the right to wear
non-school uniform. All other pupils should wear school
uniform on the day.
10 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011Tasker Milward V.C. School:
Tasker Milward School decided to coordinate a
non-uniform day during Lush Hour Activity Week.
However, instead of offering this as a free activity for
all pupils walking and cycling to school, the school
chose to ask for a contribution from pupils not
wearing school uniform, using the money raised to
purchase cycle storage facilities for the school. The
non-uniform day had a Lush Hour theme; those
pupils who opted to wear their own clothes were
charged £1, however those pupils who wore a
sports-themed costume were charged a reduced
fee of 50p. Over £500 was raised for the school
from coordinating this activity and they are currently
in the process of purchasing the school’s first ever
bike storage facilities.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 11Activity Descriptions
BMX Try Outs
45
mins -
1 hour
Yes No 30+ 1+ Yes
£ £100+
£
coordinated in your school. Once you are confident in
your pupils’ bike handling skills you may wish to move
the activity to an all-weather surface (where the bikes can
gain greater speed).
£
Time
This activity is suitable as a lunchtime or after school
£ activity. £
Costs Involved
£ £ If this activity is being coordinated by a Sustrans member
of staff, they may be able to provide the portable BMX
ramps needed for this activity. However, if you are
coordinating Lush Hour Activity Week independently
these ramps will either need to be purchased or
constructed:
Should you decide to purchase some portable BMX
ramps, a recommended supplier is Skate Hut
(www.skatehut.co.uk) and, at the time of printing this
toolkit, the most suitable ramps (at a price of £34.95)
could be found here:
Activity Description www.skatehut.co.uk/acatalog/Rampage_Launch_Ra
Portable BMX ramps are made available for pupils to try- mp____29.95.html
out. The BMX ramps can either be used by themselves
(creating a loop around which 8-10 pupils can cycle) or However, you could also consider constructing some
can form part of a larger obstacle course (see the Lush BMX ramps, either as a classroom activity or outside of
Hour Races for example obstacle course activities). lesson time. Instructions for the construction of BMX
A popular activity during Lush Hour Activity Week was to ramps can be found on the internet. For an overview of
ask pupils to compete against each other; pupils were the different types of BMX ramps you can build visit:
asked to perform the following skills using the ramps: www.livestrong.com/article/351125-plans-to-build-
bmx-ramps/
• A controlled jump (or simply to cycle over the ramp in a For instructions for making BMX ramps from wood:
controlled fashion if not confident in jumping) www.ehow.com/how_5595629_make-bmx-wood-
• Come to a complete stop with every part of their bike ramps.html or www.ehow.com/how_5162478_build-
still on the ramp bmx-ramps.html
For instructions for making BMX ramps from soil:
Older pupils, can be asked to judge the contest, giving www.ehow.com/how_6398398_make-bmx-dirt-
pupils a mark out of 10 for each of the skills performed. ramp.html
Prizes can be given to the pupils who score highest. For
a score sheet that can be used in the judging of this
contest please see Appendix 6.
If using wooden or plastic stand-alone ramps, it is
recommended that this activity takes place on grass,
particularly if it is the first time this activity has been
12 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011Support Needed
One member of staff is needed to oversee this activity.
In addition, the following equipment will be needed:
• BMX ramps
• Protective gear – which can include elbow pads, knee pads,
wrist guards and helmets. As a school you may decide to
purchase this equipment, or require pupils to bring this from
home. Alternatively you may ask parents to sign a parental
consent form that states that no protective gear will be provided
by the school.
Opportunities for Student Leadership
• What day of the week should this activity be held? Perhaps
consider holding the event on several days of the week but open
the activity to particular Year groups on particular days (e.g. Year
7 pupils on Monday, Year 8 pupils on Tuesday, Year 9 pupils on
Wednesday…)
• Do you want to coordinate a BMX-inspired competition? i.e.
pupils are scored on their ability on the ramps and the winning
pupil gets a prize at the end of the session. If you decide to
coordinate the activity more than once during the week, perhaps
hold the heats on the first four days of the week and then ask
the ‘best’ pupils back on the final day of Lush Hour Activity
Week to perform again in front of an audience
• Are any pupils undertaking their Duke of Edinburgh or Sports
Leadership Award at your school, who could be given the
responsibility of coordinating / refereeing this activity?
• Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all participants taking
part in this activity?
For a risk assessment of this activity please see Appendix 7.
Maesteg Comprehensive School
At Maesteg School, the BMX ramps proved popular both during
lunchtimes and after school. Sixth formers acted as judges during
the activities, rating the pupils on their bike-handling skills and on
the height and style of their jumps (see Appendix 6 for an
example score sheet). It was clear that a few of the pupils were
already very skilled at using the ramps, but there was a supportive
atmosphere between those who had more experience and those
who were trying the ramps for the first time, which was
commented on by the Head Teacher.
The pupils were keen for similar facilities to be available at school
after Lush Hour Activity Week had taken place. During one of the
after school sessions, they urged the Deputy Head Teacher to
consider building a small-scale BMX park on school grounds. This
idea is currently being considered. If approved, the Deputy Head is
keen for it to be youth-led; both designed and built by the pupils
using the dirt-ramp design outlined in the link above.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 13Activity Descriptions
Lush Hour Assembly
10 – 15
mins No Yes 100+ 1 No
£ £0
Activity Description
Assemblies are a very effective way of communicating
£
Opportunities for Student Leadership
Suggested student group: Eco Schools Committee /
with large numbers of pupils and teachers and getting Healthy Schools Committee / School Council
Lush Hour Activity Week. £
them involved in the activities taking place throughout • Would you like to be involved in delivering the
assembly (either in its entirety or the delivery of one
part of the assembly)?
A number of suggestions for what to include in your • Take a look at the suggested assembly activities
£
assembly can be found in Appendix 8 along with £
(Appendix 8): is there a particular theme/activity that
example PowerPoint slides. appeals to you most as a group and that will appeal
most to your peers?
£
Time £
This activity should take place at the same time as
• Can you think of other ideas for activities that could
be coordinated during an assembly?
normal assembly. Alternatively, if you decide to
coordinate a longer assembly, you may decide to bring Tasker Milward V.C. School
together classes from a particular Year group during Tasker Milward School wanted to encourage the
what might otherwise be a PSE lesson. involvement of their Year 10 pupils in the delivery of
Lush Hour Activity Week. Engagement with the school
Costs Involved began two weeks prior to the start of Lush Hour Activity
There are no costs involved in this activity. However, you Week, with all Year 10 pupils receiving an hour long
may wish to provide small prizes (for example reflective assembly from the Sustrans Project Coordinator before
wrist and ankle bands) to pupils for volunteering moving into smaller focus groups to plan additional
responses to any questions you pose during the Lush Hour activities. Throughout the week, these Year
assembly. 10 pupils coordinated a number of activities (alongside
those planned by the Sustrans Project Coordinator in
Support Needed Appendix 9) aimed at encouraging more of their peers
One member of school/Sustrans staff to deliver the to walk and cycle to school and at raising money to
assembly. Alternatively, you could decide to ask a group enable the school to purchase bike storage facilities.
of pupils to coordinate the assembly. Those pupils who did not coordinate an activity
independently, had the opportunity to assist the
In addition, the following equipment will be needed: coordination of activities planned by the Sustrans
• Laptop and DVD player Project Coordinator.
• Projector
• Large screen display
• Speakers
If you decide to coordinate one or more of the activities
outlined in the suggested Assembly presentation
(Appendix 8), you may also require the following:
• Skins DVD (or equivalent DVD that demonstrates the
independence gained from walking and cycling) –
Series 3, Episode 6
• Tape/ribbon to wrap around volunteers for SPACE
activity
• Small prizes (see above for suggestions)
• Quiz packs: A4 envelope with the following:
• 2 answer response sheets – with four letter options
(A, B, C, D)
• A3 sheet of plain paper
• Marker pen
14 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011Activity Descriptions
Lush Hour Olympics
45
mins – No No 30+ 1-8 Yes
1 hour
£
£
£ £
£ £
Activity Description Support Needed
This activity consists of an hour of cycling and walking Several members of staff/pupil supervisors will be needed
themed races and competitions which help pupils to to coordinate this event; the number required will depend
learn bike control whilst have fun. These can consist of on the number of activities coordinated at the same time.
any (or all) of the activities listed overleaf. Most events will need only one supervisor, however the
obstacle course will need a number of pupil
Time supervisors/staff overseeing different areas of the race
This activity (or parts of this activity) are suitable for and the limbo activity will need two pupil
coordination during lunchtimes. Activities can be supervisors/teachers to hold the pole.
coordinated once or several times during the week.
A large area will need to be cordoned off for the activity.
Costs Involved Ideally this will be somewhere fairly central in the school
With the exception of prizes for winning the races and grounds to encourage spectators and to create
potential costs in the purchase of equipment needed (for excitement about the event.
details on the purchase of or instructions of how to build
your own BMX Ramps please see the BMX Try Outs In addition, the following equipment will be needed:
activity description), there are no costs involved in • A whistle
coordinating this activity. • Markers and cones
• Clipboards, pens and paper (to record results)
• BMX ramps (for the obstacle course)
• A limbo pole (lightweight)
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 15Opportunities for Student Leadership Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales High School
• Which of the races above would you like to feature in One of the most popular activities at the Bishop of
the Lush Hour Olympics? Llandaff School was the Lush Hour Obstacle Course. To
• Will you coordinate the races at different times complete the obstacle course, pupils had to first carefully
(requiring less support) or all together? navigate the BMX ramps before moving into the Bike
• Are there any other races/activities that you can think Slalom which finished with a limbo pole for them to cycle
of? under. Once safely under the pole, pupils had to turn and
• What day of the week should this activity be held? look over their shoulder and call out the number of
Perhaps consider holding the event on several days of fingers being held up by one of the course supervisors.
the week but open the activity to particular Year groups The competitors then raced each other back to the start
on particular days (e.g. Year 7 pupils on Monday, Year line. For a more detailed description of each of these
8 pupils on Tuesday, Year 9 pupils on Wednesday…) activities please see Appendix 11.
• Do you want to establish a league table, whereby the
winners of the individual events during the week come Sixth formers acted as supervisors of the course,
together on the final day and race each other? including holding the bike limbo, ensuring no cones were
• Who will be responsible for each of the races? displaced and calling the start and finish of the race.
• Will you allow a ‘practice run’ for pupils taking part They were also keen to test out the course before the
before each competition starts? competition began! With two lanes in operation, a
• Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all participants championship was held. The winner from each heat
taking part in this activity? progressed to the next round and the finalists were
awarded a first and second prize.
For a risk assessment of these activities please see
Appendix 7.
16 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011Activity Description
Ideally this will take place on a racing track. Otherwise two endpoints should be marked out. Introduce
competitors to the purpose of gears “low for slow, high you fly”. See Appendix 10 for a simple method
Slow Bike Race of explaining how gears work. Pupils are challenged to race each other to the finish line however it is the
slowest one who wins. If a player puts their foot down or moves outside of the boundaries of their lane (if
on a racing track) then they are disqualified.
Ideally this will take place on a racing track. Otherwise, mark out a large circuit. Introduce competitors to
the purpose of gears “low for slow, high you fly”. See Appendix 10 for a simple method of explaining how
gears work. Ask competitors to get into their highest gear and then to cycle very slowly around one
circuit of the track. When the whistle blows, the competitors must pedal as hard as possible and
Bike Sprints complete the circuit in the fastest time.
Alternatively, ask riders to line up on the start line and race around a simple circuit (using markers if no
track is available). At the end of each lap, the last rider across the line is eliminated. This is repeated until
only two riders are left to sprint it out to the finish line. NB: Make sure the circuit is wide all the way round
with no ‘bottlenecks’.
Wheelie Pupils compete to complete the longest wheelie. Elbow, knee and wrist guards should be used for this
Competition activity as well as helmets.
Pupils pedal as fast as they can to a point when they must stop pedalling and see how far they can
coast. The pupil who coasts the furthest distance is the winner. Tip: When freewheeling, stand up on the
Coast the Most pedals and try to keep the cranks horizontal. To make this activity harder: Think about adding
obstacles/cones to freewheel around.
An obstacle course is created using the BMX ramps / figures of eight / number calls / funnels / slaloms /
brake box (for up to five seconds) / short carry / bike limbo. For a description of each of these obstacles
please see Appendix 11.
Obstacle Course
NB: You may wish to have a number of supervisors on this route to check that pupils complete each of
the challenges safely and correctly.
Riders start at opposite ends of a circuit track. They cycle around the circuit, trying to catch the other
Individual / Team rider. The winner is the rider who reaches the other rider first. You can decide to enforce a ‘winner stays
Pursuit on’ rule or to time the length of time it takes for one of the riders to win. Alternatively, put pupils into
teams and set each of the teams the challenge of catching the other. All riders in a team must finish
together and the time taken to catch the team is on the last rider.
Riders work in pairs, taking it in turns to be the ‘Orbiter’. Riders line up one behind the other at the start
line. The aim is for the ‘Orbiter’ to ride in front of their partners, pass behind them, around and finally in
front of them on their opposite side. When they reach the other side, they tag the next pair in their team.
This is repeated four times (or as appropriate). The winning team is the team that finishes fastest. If a pair
fails to complete a full orbit / knocks their team mate off in completing their orbit they must return to their
start line and begin their turn again. Tip: riders must talk to each other, the ‘Orbiter’ must not cut in too
close and the rider being ‘orbited’ should not ride too fast.
Orbiter Relay
An alternative race is to challenge each pair to complete as many orbits as possible in a set distance.
Ideally this will take place on a racing track otherwise two endpoints should be marked out. The winning
team is the pair who completes the highest number of orbits in one turn. This activity requires the rider
being ‘orbited’ to cycle very slowly, whilst the ‘Orbiter’ cycles very fast.
A circle is marked out in the playground. Players must cycle around each other within the circle without
touching another bike, putting their feet down or moving outside of the circle boundaries. As play
progresses the circle is made smaller and smaller.
From a start point, pupils are told to take the ten largest strides possible; the winner is the pupil who
Giant Strides
travels the furthest distance.
Start by asking each rider to practice the ‘ducking down’ technique with the bar high enough for all the
riders to easily negotiate. Riders then take it in turns to ride in a straight line under the limbo bar. Riders
Bike Limbo need to pedal up to the bar but they should freewheel under it. Gradually lower the bar allowing riders
two attempts each at any one height before asking them to sit out.
Mark out a start and finish line approximately 50 metres apart. Competitors race each other, running
Saddle Push alongside their bikes and only holding onto the saddle to guide their bike. They must not use their
handlebars to steer their bikes.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 17Activity Descriptions
Bike-Powered Smoothie Maker
15 – 20
mins Yes Yes 20+ 1 1
£ £200+
£
£
£ £
£ £
Activity Description Time
This is a human-powered smoothie maker; as pupils This is an activity that is suitable for breaktime or
pedal the bike, the movement of the wheels powers the lunchtime; you could consider setting up the bike in an
blender to create delicious smoothies. Frozen fruit, area of the canteen so that when pupils arrive to buy
bananas and fruit juice along with other selected their snacks during breaktime they are also able to see
ingredients are piled into the smoothie jug. This is then this activity taking place.
placed on a special device on the back of a bike; as the
pupils pedal the bike, the blades in the smoothie maker Costs Involved
are turned and the ingredients are blended together. With If your Lush Hour Activity Week is being coordinated by a
two jugs, two different flavours of smoothie can be made member of Sustrans staff, they may be able to provide
during the same breaktime. the bike-powered smoothie maker (or to hire one on your
behalf). If you are coordinating Lush Hour Activity Week
Recommended recipe: independently you will need to consider either renting or
200g frozen fruit (raspberries, strawberries, buying a smoothie maker in order to coordinate this
activity. One supplier of bike powered smoothie makers is
mangoes etc.)
Rock the Bike, visit http://rockthebike.com/products to
2 bananas view their list of products available. As an alternative to
1/2 litre of orange juice buying your own bike powered smoothie maker, some
Place all the ingredients into the smoothie jug and local community organisations will hire smoothie makers
blend. This recipe makes approximately 10 small on a daily basis. Contact Sustrans Cymru (Tel: 029 2065
0602) for further advice.
cups (or 20 half cups) of fruit smoothie.
There is also a cost involved in purchasing the
ingredients for the bike powered smoothie maker
18 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011(see suggested recipe). However, you may consider
approaching a local supermarket to provide these
ingredients to the school free of charge in return for
promotion at the event. Please see Appendix 12 for
a template that can be used to assist you in
composing this letter.
Support Needed
At least one member of staff/one pupil supervisor
will be needed to coordinate this event. You will also
need plastic cups in order for the pupils to taste the
fruits of their labour!
Opportunities for Student Leadership
Suggested group: Healthy Schools Committee
• Do you want to charge pupils to make their own
smoothie? Or perhaps organise a team of
smoothie-makers who then sell the smoothies
made in order to raise funds for the school?
• Would you like to be involved in coordinating the
activity?
• When would you like the activity to take place?
• What day of the week should this activity be held?
Perhaps consider holding the event on several
days of the week but open the activity to
particular Year groups on particular days (e.g. Year
7 pupils on Monday, Year 8 pupils on Tuesday,
Year 9 pupils on Wednesday…)
• Which smoothie(s) would you like to make? See
opposite page for a recipe suggestion or
alternatively you might like to experiment and think
up one of your own.
• Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all
participants taking part in this activity?
For a risk assessment of this activity please see
Appendix 13.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 19Activity Descriptions
Dr. Bike
1 day Yes Yes 100+ 1 Yes
£ £0 - £140
£
£
£ £
£ £
Activity Description recommended that the activity does not happen on the
Dr Bike involves inviting bike mechanics to visit your first day of the week as this will allow time to remind
school to perform basic maintenance and ‘health’ checks pupils to bring their bikes in for servicing. However, it
on pupils’ bikes. They can often be invited from a local should take place early enough in the week so that the
bike shop as it is a good way for the bike shop to gain pupils are able to have their bikes repaired in time to
publicity amongst pupils at the school (Appendix 14). participate in other activities.
Common problems including flat tyres, dry chains and
badly aligned gears or brakes can often be fixed quickly Costs Involved
by the onsite mechanic; more troublesome/time- There may be costs incurred by this activity. There are
consuming problems can be identified and pupils can be two options for coordinating Dr Bike at your school:
advised to visit a local bike shop to have the problems • Dr Bike is provided by a local bike shop free of charge.
fixed. You can use the template letter in Appendix 14 to
assist you in composing a letter of request to your local
Time bike shop.
This activity should take place one day during Lush Hour • Dr Bike is provided by an external provider at a cost of
Activity Week (with the mechanic working on the bikes approximately £140 for one mechanic for a full day.
throughout the day, including during lesson time). It is Support Needed
20 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011If the Dr Bike is being provided by a local bike shop secure but pupils are still able to observe the work
employee, it is advised that you discuss with them being undertaken by the bike mechanic during
any support they may require. breaktimes and lunchtimes.
In addition, the following equipment will be needed: Opportunities for Student Leadership
• Raffle tickets – this allows pupils to leave their bikes • On which day would you like the activity to take
during lesson time and then to collect them later in place?
the day. One raffle ticket should be given to the • How would you like to promote the opportunity to
pupil, the second should be taped to the bike (with pupils?
the pupil’s surname written on the back). Note that • Would you like to be involved in coordinating the
these raffle tickers should be a different colour to handling of the bikes (i.e. handing out the raffle
the raffle tickets being used for the Lush Hour Raffle tickets at the beginning of the day and returning the
(if both activities are being coordinated) in order to bikes to the correct owner at the end of the day)?
avoid any confusion. • Would you like to contact your local bike shop on
• Dr Bike will also require a cordoned (preferably behalf of your school? If so, please find a template
lockable) area to service the bikes in. A lockable letter you could use to assist you in drafting this
tennis court is an ideal location as the bikes will be letter in Appendix 14.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 21Activity Descriptions
Treasure Hunt
£
30 – 45
mins No Yes 100+ 6 No £0
£
£
£ £
£ £
The most popular walking activity trialled was the Costs Involved
Treasure Hunt. With the exception of prizes (if you decide to offer these),
there are no costs involved in coordinating this activity.
Activity Description
Pupils are put into teams. The size of these teams Support Needed
depends on how many pupils wish to take part; if 25 sets The support needed to coordinate this activity ranges
of clues are provided in total, no more than 25 from one member of staff/a pupil supervisor to six
individuals/teams can take part in the race. members of staff/pupil supervisors – see below for
details.
All pupils must start the hunt at the same time. The race
begins with the first clue, handed to each person/team In addition the following equipment will be needed:
by the hunt supervisor. They must then follow this clue to • Compasses for the pupils to navigate the course
find the next. On the back of each clue, the pupils will (optional). If you decide to coordinate the activity
find a letter; they should collect all the clues as they travel without compasses you should begin the activity by
around the course. Once they have completed the hunt asking pupils (as a group) to identify which way is
they must rearrange the letters to spell a word associated North, South, East and then West
with active travel (if you decide to use the clues provided • Trundle wheel – to be used by the supervisor(s) to
in the template, Appendix 15, this word is FREEDOM). measure the course. This should not be offered to
The first individual/team to complete the hunt, return to pupils; instead they should be encouraged to learn the
the hunt supervisor and spell the word wins a prize. length of a meter before beginning the hunt
• The distance of one metre marked out in masking tape
Time on the floor at the start of the hunt so that pupils have
This activity is suitable for lunchtime or after school; it is the opportunity to learn how long their stride(s) must be
recommended a minimum of 30 minutes is set aside to to equal a metre
coordinate the hunt.
22 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011• 25 sets of clues – please see Appendix 15 for a Bishop of Llandaff Church in Wales High School
template which can be used to create these. The clue The treasure hunt often proved to be the most
template has been designed so that it is easy to adapt successful activity in each school during Lush Hour
the hunt to your individual school (direction of travel – Activity Week. Where it worked best was with the help of
North, South, East and West – and distance – in pupils to hold the clues in various locations around the
meters - to travel in each direction). These templates school. In the Bishop of Llandaff School, this role was
can also be used to set several different hunts in the performed by sixth formers who were able to meet with
same school. You should ensure that the start and end the Sustrans Project Coordinator during the lesson
of the competition are in the same place to facilitate before lunchtime to be given their allocated positions on
the collection of equipment and distribution of prizes the hunt. Sixth formers, being older, were also less likely
to succumb to peer pressure (i.e. telling their friends
Opportunities for Student Leadership where the next clue could be found) or intimidation! The
• Would you like to offer more than one prize (i.e. 1st, activity proved so popular, it was coordinated again on
2nd, 3rd or winner in each Year group)? You may want the Friday of Lush Hour Activity Week when nearly
to decide this on the day (depending on how many double the number of pupils took part.
participants there are).
• What day of the week should this activity be held?
Perhaps consider holding the event on several days of
the week but open the activity to particular Year groups
on particular days (e.g. Year 7 pupils on Monday, Year
8 pupils on Tuesday, Year 9 pupils on Wednesday…) If
you take this approach you may need to change the
course each day (to avoid cheating). You may also
want to record the fastest times so that you are able to
announce an overall winner at the end of the week.
• This activity can be coordinated by hiding the clues in
various locations or by having a pupil representative, in
each of the locations that pupils are directed to, who
distributes the next clues. Which method would you
like to adopt? If it is the first, you will need just one
supervisor, if it is the second you will need six
representatives to hide in different locations around the
“Increasing physical activity has the
school. NB: Based on the outcomes of the pilot
project, it is highly recommended that the clues are potential to improve the physical and
held by pupil representatives in order to prevent clues mental health of the nation, reduce
being misplaced/scattered all-cause mortality and improve life
• If you would like to be involved in setting the course
you will need to source the equipment outlined above.
expectancy… Other potential
The clues can be adapted to your individual school so benefits linked to physical activity in
you will need to complete the details for your school on children and young people include
each of the clues provided (direction of travel – North,
South, East and West – and meters to travel in each
the acquisition of social skills
direction). You should ensure that the start and end of (leadership, teamwork and co-
the competition are in the same place to facilitate the operation), better concentration in
collection of equipment and distribution of prizes.
school and displacement of anti-
• Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all participants
taking part in this activity? social and criminal behaviour.”
Start Active, Stay Active, a report on physical
activity for health from the four home countries’
Chief Medical Officers
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 23Activity Descriptions
Bike Bands
45
mins –
1 hour
Yes Yes 8 – 10 1 No
£ £50+
£
£
£ £
£ £
Activity Description • Use the cone shaped part of the pliers in the hole on
Pupils have the opportunity to make man-bands and underside of the bracelet and clamp the top (smooth)
bracelets out of old bike tyres – an attractive and piece to the top cup piece by bending out the part
sustainable activity. During the trial of Lush Hour Activity of the smooth piece that pokes through the tyre strip
Week, this proved to be a popular wet weather activity as (fig. 4)
it can be easily coordinated indoors. • Repeat for the bottom two pieces (fig. 5), make sure
the bottom cup is positioned on the top side of the tyre
Please find a suggested process for this activity below: to fit into the cup of the top piece
• Wash the tyres if necessary. • Then cut the lip into a point or a curve depending on
• Cut the wire out of the rim of the tyres. You can use the preference of the pupil (fig. 7)
wire cutters to cut through the wire or alternatively
pierce the side of the tyre with scissors then continue Time
to cut around the tyre, inside of the wire Due to the time taken to explain the process and make
• Neaten up the edges of the tyre and then cut into wrist the bracelets/man bands this activity is recommended as
sized lengths. a lunchtime or after school activity.
Please note: depending on the size of group you will be
working with, you may wish to decide to get to this stage Costs Involved
of the process in advance of the activity. If this activity is being coordinated by a Sustrans member
• Taking your strips of tyre, measure roughly where the of staff they may be able to provide the equipment
holes need to go to make a (slightly) loose fit on the needed (for equipment list please see below). Otherwise,
pupil. Punch a hole using the punch plier tool (fig.1). this will need to be provided by the school. Suggestions
Leave a lip of 1.5cms at one end of the tyre strip where for suppliers to use are given below, however you may
they will pull to release the bracelet. find some or all of this equipment is available from the
• Taking the press studs, select four press stud pieces Design and Technology department.
(each one is different in shape). Take the two top
pieces (fig. 2) and push the top smooth piece through
the top side of the tyre into the top cup piece
24 Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011fig 1: Punching holes in the tyre bracelet fig 2: Top press studs fig. 3: Feed through hole
fig. 4: Clamping two pieces together fig. 5: Bottom press studs fig. 6: Position bottom cup to fit top cup
Support Needed
One member of staff will be needed to coordinate this
activity. The number of pupils that can take part per
supervisor should be restricted to a maximum of eight
pupils. The equipment list below is also suitable for a
group of this size; if more pupils are to take part, it is
recommended equipment is provided in multiples of the
quantities listed below.
fig. 7: Cut lip to pupil preference
In addition the following equipment will be needed:
• Old Tyres: Ask in your local bike shops, they are usually
very grateful to get rid of as many as you can take. In
particular, look for coloured tyres or those with funky Instead, a recommended supplier is your local
grip patterns. Knobbly tyres look good but are often HobbyCraft (www.hobbycraft.co.uk) (approx. £10 each)
too thick for the hole punch tool
• Scissors x2: These should be good quality, sharp Opportunities for Student Leadership
scissors Suggested group: Eco Schools Committee – this activity
• Punch Plier Tool x2: Again these should be good promotes the recycling and reuse of materials which fits
quality, able to punch 5mm holes in rubber. A well with the Eco Schools agenda.
recommended supplier is Abbey Saddlery • You could consider charging pupils to take part or
(www.abbeysaddlery.co.uk) and, at the time of printing selling the man bands / bracelets made in order to
this toolkit, the most suitable tool (at a price of £20) raise money for the school
can be found at the following website: • What day of the week would you like to hold the Bike
http://www.abbeysaddlery.co.uk/product_detail.cfm?id Bands activity? Perhaps consider holding the activity
=FS005&attr1=ONE00001 on several days of the week as only a few pupils will be
• 15mm Press Studs: These can be purchased from able to take part each time
local markets but can be cheaper when bought from • Would you like to award a raffle ticket to all participants
ebay.co.uk (approx. £15 for 200 studs) taking part in this activity?
• Press Stud Tool x2: Basic press stud tools are usually
provided with the press studs but you generally have to For a risk assessment of this activity please see
use a hammer with these which can be dangerous. Appendix 16.
Lush Hour Activity Week Toolkit 2011 25You can also read
