Team GB"s cycling heroes call for "legacy of everyday cycling"

A group of Britain’s medal-winning cyclists from the Rio Olympics have written to Theresa May to tell her the best way to honour their achievements would be for the government to invest heavily in everyday bike-riding.

The signatories, including Laura Trott, Jason Kenny, Mark Cavendish, Joanna Rowsell Shand and Becky James, as well as Sir Chris Hoy, jointly with Kenny the country’s most successful Olympian, told May: “You were widely reported in the media as saying that there will be ‘no limits’ on the honours that could be bestowed on our medal winners.”

They continued: “But the best way to honour the achievements of our athletes would be a legacy of everyday cycling in this country – a place where cycling is the choice form of transport for people to get around in their daily lives.”

The letter was organised by British Cycling, which as well as being a sporting body also campaigns for better everyday bike provision. It pointed out the disparity between Britain’s vast success in sports cycling and the relatively tiny numbers who use bikes for transport, arguing cycling should be treated as consistently and seriously by government as the roads, rail or aviation.

Chris Boardman at the Cycling World Championships in France, 2000. He has asked to meet Theresa May. Photograph: Franck Prevel/AP

Britain won six golds and 12 medals overall at cycling in Rio, topping the medals table in the sport for the third successive Olympics. Yet the proportion of trips made by bike has remained constant at about 2%, with relatively little investment in bike lanes outside London and a handful of other places.

While David Cameron famously said he hoped to see a “cycling revolution”, an eventual walking and cycling strategy, released earlier this year, was written off by cycle campaigners as worthless, with the money committed around £1 per person per year, against a figure of about £28 in the Netherlands.

The Olympians’ letter urged May to “set out a timeline to address the chronic underfunding and lack of leadership which is keeping cycling for transport in the slow lane”. It added: “Only networks of segregated cycle lanes in towns and cities across the country can achieve and influence growth.”

With a chronically sedentary nation and around one in three children overweight or obese, investment in cycling would pay enormous health dividends, the letter argued, as well as boosting businesses along the routes, and making towns and cities less congested and more liveable.

“There is huge latent demand for cycling,” they wrote. “Two thirds of people would cycle more if they felt safer on the roads.” The letter asks the government to commit 5% of its transport spend to cycling, and to improve law enforcement to better protect cyclists.

Philip Hindes, Jason Kenny and Callum Skinner with their gold medals following the Rio 2016 men’s team sprint final. Photograph: David Davies/PA

“Investment in cycling as a form of transport isn’t purely an investment in cycle lanes,” the letter concluded. “It is an investment that will pay off for the nation’s health, wealth, transport infrastructure and the vibrancy of our towns and cities. It has the added benefit of just making it easier for ordinary families to get to work and get to school.

“Our athletes have inspired the country and now we urge the government to take cycling seriously as a transport option for everyone.”

The signatories are asking May to meet Chris Boardman, whose cycling gold at the 1992 Olympics heralded Britain’s success in the sport, and who is now British Cycling’s policy adviser.

Boardman said he hoped for a fresh start after the lack of action from Cameron’s “cycling revolution” and the cycling and walking investment strategy.

“It was quite a step, so we were all pretty gutted when we saw it will amount over this parliament to less than a pound a head, which just beggars belief,” he said.

Boardman said he hoped the letter would “put some moral pressure on the prime minister to have to say either what we’re going to do, or why we’re not going to do it”.

He said: “Even in these austere times it’s such a good economic investment, it’s such an efficient spend of cash. It’s exactly what they should be doing. So what we deserve is an answer.”

At the moment, Boardman said, the government was officially committed to doubling the numbers of cyclists by 2025, but had no real means to achieve this. He said: “The question I would like to ask is, you want to double the amount of cycling, to get from 2% to 4%. Do you think less than £1 a head will achieve that target? I don’t think anybody could look you in the eye and say, yes.”

A cycle left as a protest by Bikes Alive at King’s Cross, London. Photograph: Sarah Lee for the Guardian

A Department for Transport spokesman said government investment in cycling had tripled since 2010. He said: “We are spending £300m on cycling funding and a further £500m for infrastructure in local communities which will include benefits for cyclists.

“The number of people choosing to get about by bike has grown over recent years and, following the success of our Rio Olympians, we want to see this trend continue.”

The letter to Theresa May

Dear Prime Minister,

The Great Britain cycling team athletes topped the cycling medal table for the third Olympic Games in a row at Rio 2016. It was a truly outstanding performance and enhances Britain’s status as the world’s leading elite cycling nation.

You were widely reported in the media as saying that there will be “no limits” on the honours that could be bestowed on our medal winners. But the best way to honour the achievements of our athletes would be a legacy of every-day cycling in this country – a place where cycling is the choice form of transport for people to get around in their daily lives.

Your predecessor called for a “cycling revolution” and your government’s manifesto sets out a target to “double” the number of journeys cycled. While some steps have been made, cycling is still a transport mode which does not enjoy the government investment or political leadership given to roads, rail or aviation.

The government is now considering feedback on the draft Cycling and Walking Investment Strategy (CWIS). We urge the government to publish this and set out a timeline to address the chronic underfunding and lack of leadership which is keeping cycling for transport in the slow lane. Only networks of segregated cycle lanes in towns and cities across the country can achieve and influence growth.

The success of the CWIS will be felt not only across government but in all areas of the nation’s life.

The government’s sports strategy seeks to extend the number of people living physically active lives and could be truly transformative. Active travel – walking and cycling – is the easiest way for people of all ages to fit physical activity into their lives. Currently, only one in five people achieve the recommended levels of physical activity.

Around one in three children is overweight or obese. The government’s childhood obesity strategy recognises the value of physical activity and the importance of walking and cycling to school. I am sure you know that this will seem a fanciful idea for most parents without the convenient walking and cycling routes which would give them the confidence that their children will be safe getting to school. Yet we know it can be achieved – in the Netherlands, 50% of education-age children cycle to school.

As cities like Copenhagen and New York have shown, cycling also creates better places to live and work. More cycling cuts congestion, reduces noise pollution and fuels local economies. Small businesses in New York have seen a 49% increase in business where cycle lanes have been installed.

There is huge latent demand for cycling. Two thirds of people would cycle more if they felt safer on the roads. The government’s road safety statement reiterates the manifesto commitment to reduce the number of cyclists killed or injured. The CWIS needs to set targets to improve road maintenance, enhance enforcement of the laws, and update the rules of the road to better consider the needs of cyclists.

To make this happen, we need 5% of the government’s transport spend allocated to cycling. This is the only way that cycling will be integrated into transport strategy and given the priority it deserves.

Investment in cycling as a form of transport isn’t purely an investment in cycle lanes. It is an investment that will pay off for the nation’s health, wealth, transport infrastructure and the vibrancy of our towns and cities. It has the added benefit of just making it easier for ordinary families to get to work and get to school.

Our athletes have inspired the country and now we urge the government to take cycling seriously as a transport option for everyone.

British Cycling’s policy adviser Chris Boardman would welcome a meeting to discuss this further. We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Chris Boardman, policy adviser, British Cycling and Olympic gold medalist

Sir Chris Hoy, six-time Olympic gold medallist, joint most successful British Olympian

Laura Trott, four-time Olympic gold medallist and Britain’s most successful female Olympian

Jason Kenny, six-time Olympic gold medallist, joint most successful British Olympian

Mark Cavendish, Olympic silver medallist

Joanna Rowsell Shand, double Olympic gold medallist

Elinor Barker, Olympic gold medallist

Owain Doull, Olympic gold medallist

Becky James, double Olympic silver medallist

Katy Marchant, bronze medallist

Team GB"s cycling heroes call for "legacy of everyday cycling"

We need to end seeking for heroes and villains in the NHS

The NHS must not search for heroic leaders to conserve the day, or label staff as villains. Photograph: Allstar/WARNER BROS/Sportsphoto Ltd./Allstar

Select up any newspaper, pay attention to the radio, or observe Television, and it is not tough to uncover but yet another unfavorable NHS story.

Worse nevertheless, we often see a named and blamed villain (or villains) responsible for the reported debacle. The imbalance in between the variety of negative and positive stories about the NHS is stark. So, is this a honest reflection – and are there any potentially damaging consequences?

The NHS spends billions of pounds of taxpayers’ money, so there is a very good reason for it to be publicly exposed and held to account for any failings. But why are the majority of publicised stories negative? All also typically good stories are neither published nor promulgated, but the media assert that they are basically giving the public what it wants.

Final yr an Ipsos MORI survey reported that it is the NHS that tends to make folks most proud to be British. This begs a societal query about how a lot a continual barrage of unfavorable NHS stories could injury our emotions about our heritage, our society and our nation. But probably my disquiet is unfounded as, paradoxically, current study undertaken by YouGov for the NHS Alliance identified that over half of adults (53%) mentioned that their feelings about the NHS were no distinct to a yr ago, and that men and women still trust the NHS to appear following them. However, a single in five reported that they trusted the NHS much less than they did a 12 months ago.

In the very same survey, much less than 1 in 10 respondents thought that politicians portray the NHS in a balanced light, although eleven% believed the media’s portrayal to be balanced. It is not surprising that people truly feel baffled.

You could argue that it is proper that there is open and frank criticism of the NHS relating to system failures, as exemplified by the problems faced in emergency care. But it looks unfair when this is not reported alongside the context of austerity, inadequate technological innovation, workforce shortages and a relentless increasing demand on solutions driven by demographic adjustments. It need to come as no surprise that the NHS is overwhelmed.

To solve these seemly intractable problems demands vision and will. This need to be executed through a new type of leadership primarily based on wholehearted collaborative operating.

No single leader or organisation can kind this out. . The troubles the NHS faces today are hugely complex, so to succeed we need to have a complete-program technique defined by mutual trust and respect.

Negative stories in the press – specially when told with the intent of exposing a “villain” – work towards believe in. They damage self confidence in men and women, staff groups and organisations, and develop a culture of fear and defensiveness.

Professor Don Berwick, in his review of patient security, urged us to depart worry, blame, recrimination and demoralisation behind and move forward with power and optimism. Media reports that make sweeping statements blaming callous and uncaring NHS employees threat damaging their sense of wellbeing and value. Consequently, this also affects patient safety and care. We even see instances in which patients are portrayed as the villains – becoming accused of abusing or overusing companies or referred to as “bed blockers”.

Fantastic healthcare organisations across the globe – no matter whether in the personal or public sector – realize the rewards of producing a trusting surroundings which values and supports personnel and actively listens to – and acts on – employees and patient suggestions. NHS personnel know this as well. Throughout a current Healthcare Professionals Network on the internet debate about personnel engagement, Roger Kline, the director of Patients Initial, put it nicely when he mentioned that “if concerns raised are acted on, and these raising them are thanked and praised, that sets an illustration, a mood, the culture”.

Our challenge is to alter our leadership model to a single of distributive leadership. The NHS have to cease to pursue and appoint single “hero” leaders to save the day. We must show what we want to see in others by personally welcoming and encouraging criticism of ourselves, and creating it safe and normal for workers and individuals to do so.

But if the search for heroes and villains continues it will perpetuate a culture of dependency and worry, putting immense strain on employees – especially those who perform in organisations that are underneath the microscope. A damaging atmosphere diminishes our ability to engage fully in our perform and, eventually, has an effect on workers morale and patient care.

Talking up the NHS is essential. Not due to the fact it can make us feel excellent, but because it provides the NHS a possibility to meet the difficulties it faces. It generates trust, self confidence and discretionary energy, just at the level when it is required.

2014 could be a turning stage for the long term of the NHS as we strategy the up coming election. The NHS Confederation has appealed to all political parties to assist the NHS create the area for modify as element of its 2015 Challenge.

We can all perform our portion by generating positive that for each damaging story we hear about the NHS, we inform two optimistic ones. We must end shying away from the leadership challenge, and resist the temptation to hide behind heroes and villains.

Dr Karen Castille is the NHS Confederation associate director and chair of the urgent and emergency care forum

This post is published by Guardian Specialist. Join the Healthcare Experts Network to acquire normal emails and exclusive provides.

We need to end seeking for heroes and villains in the NHS