FUNDING from Earth Hour Chard events will be used to allow parents to purchase heavily discounted cycling helmets for their children next weekend.
A total of 55 brand-new cycling helmets worth £35 will be available for £5 for children aged 11 and under at the Wheels in Motion bicycle shop, Holyrood Street, on Saturday, February 12.
To be eligible to purchase a discounted helmet, parents will need to collect a voucher from Eleos Café, Fore Street, tomorrow (Monday, February 7).
They will need to bring the voucher and their child to Wheels in Motion on February 12, where a team of people will be on hand to ensure children are given a helmet that fits.
There will be 60 vouchers printed to ensure all 55 cycling helmets are sold.
The helmets will be made available on a first-come, first-served basis.
The initiative has been organised by councillor Tim Eggins, chairman of the South Somerset Green Party.
He helped organise two Earth Hour Chard events in 2016 and 2018.
The 2018 event raised money for future community events and action to help fight climate change through ticket sales for live music.
Earth Hour is held annually in March and aims to raise awareness of nature loss and climate change.
Cllr Eggins hopes this event will help make cycling accessible to people in Chard, improve residents’ physical and mental health, and encourage families to enjoy the town’s local scenery.
“Cycling really good for the town and people’s mental and physical health,” he said.
“If you get enough cyclists on the streets, it reduces air pollution and helps reduce the speeds of cars as they slow down for cyclists.
“It’s great for families and it gets people out enjoying our beautiful countryside.”
He said one of the “sticking points” that may be preventing some families from encouraging their children to cycle is not having sufficient safety equipment.
“We’ll have people there to make sure they have got the right size helmet,” he said.
“If they bring their bikes along, we will also have people there to service them.”
Cllr Eggins will be standing for the Green Party in the elections for the new Somerset Council unitary authority in May.
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