Bolton-based community bike club receives vital funding from ‘Cash4Clubs’ charity to keep it on the road

The Bike Hub – run by Bolton based sports charity WAVE Adventures – was given the much-needed injection of cash from Flutter UKI’s ‘Cash4Clubs’ scheme to help keep the wheels turning.

Not only did the £2,000 funding help pay the rent for the centre on Bury Road, Bolton, but it also helped finance the bike mechanics and pay for equipment.

And now a new round of Cash4Clubs grants - like the one that helped WAVE -are available to other groups in the Bolton area if they apply before December 12.

Sports clubs and organisations around the UK are able to apply for £400,000 worth of free grants to help their community group.

The club has been open for four years and has become a central meeting place, education centre and repair shop for bike lovers around the area.

It also teaches vital bike maintenance and servicing courses to underprivileged young people who could use the skills they learn there to get employment in the future.

Funding from the nationwide ‘Cash4Clubs’ initiative – backed by Flutter UKI – has allowed organisers at WAVE to continue their important community work.

The charity started 25 years ago as a climbing club for people with neurodiversity and autism but has grown to provide lots of different opportunities to around 1,500 people a year.

Some of the charity grant has also been used to start sending some of its younger people on Duke of Edinburgh Award schemes.

Graham Wood, founder and CEO of WAVE, said: “Our services have become vital to some of the most underprivileged people in the country, and our bike club is a centre of real importance for so many people. Cyclists can go and get their bike fixed, learn how to work on bikes and pick up vital skills.

“When we got the ‘Cash4Clubs’ grant we knew that it was very important that we kept this club going and without money like this it would be very hard to keep such a service on the road. We are very grateful the funding came.

“Our charity prides itself on giving people from one of the most deprived areas in the country opportunities to do things that they otherwise wouldn’t. We have a mobile climbing wall and run canoeing lessons, encourage cycling – these are all things that so many people wouldn’t have a chance to do if we weren’t here.

“This ‘Cash4Clubs’ grant was a real shot in the arm for us.”

Former college lecturer Graham set up the charity in 1999 to help meet the need for more opportunities for people in the Bolton area.

Since then, the club has grown in size and has almost 1,500 people using its services a year, with participants ranging from toddlers to an 82-year-old.

A spokesperson for Flutter UKI said: “We know that Cash4Clubs can play an important part in helping at the grassroots level – great stories such as Wave Adventures show the power the programme can have by enabling small clubs to play an even bigger role in their community.

“There are real benefits to encouraging people to try out a sport or exercise a bit more and we hope this year’s funding will make a real difference.”

Betting and gaming group Flutter UKI funds the Cash4Clubs initiative and is extending the deadline to December 12 due to the sheer number of grassroots clubs that have already submitted bids for 2024.

Cash4Clubs awards 200 community organisations £2,000 worth of funding to help drive participation in sports and wellbeing, improve facilities and run coaching programmes.

Since the initiative was launched in 2008, nearly £6 million has been invested into community sports by Flutter UKI through its brands, which include Betfair, Paddy Power, Sky Betting & Gaming and tombola.

Last year, 40,000 people across 50 different sports benefitted from the Cash4Clubs fund. Almost 85% of those clubs funded were from lower socio-economic groups.

Applications for the current round of funding close on December 14. Applications can be made at https://cash-4-clubs.com/.