TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week

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TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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
TOOLKIT TOOLKIT Your school's hands-on guide to coordinating an action packed walking and cycling activity week
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 2011
Tasker 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   11
Activity 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 2011
Support 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   13
Activity 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 2011
Activity 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   15
Opportunities 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 2011
Activity            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      17
Activity 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   19
Activity 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 2011
If 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   21
Activity 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   23
Activity 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 2011
fig 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     25
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