Overall GiG Score: 26 based on 18 data points
Finance: 6
Governance: 6
Support: 14
Poor Liquidity: -1, Strong growth: +2, Future income +5,
Good trustee age range: +3, Dynamic board: +3,
Supporters: +14

THE BIKE PROJECT 

Overview

The Bike Project is achieving its mission to 'get refugees cycling' by giving second-hand bikes donated by the general public to refugees in need, assisting them with biking lessons and providing them with volunteering opportunities that build valuable workplace skills.

They have introduced mobile drop-off points and virtual programmes to aid the high demand for bikes by refugees over recent years. This has allowed them to expand their core activities out of London to new cities.

Funding from bike sales and servicing has continued to rise, even though challenges have been seen through the pandemic. Introduction of a physical retail spaces hopes to decrease dependency on grant maker donations and add to cost savings.

Source: Giving is Great

Mission:

Helping refugees gain stability in their lives by providing them with free bicycle donations and riding lessons
Analysis by Giving is Great

Positives:

  • The charity has received backing from several prominent grant makers recently and there are significant future grants due to be received
  • There has been strong growth in spending over the last 5 years
  • There have been no material income shortfalls in recent years
  • The Board appears to be well diversified in terms of age and dynamic in terms of composition

Financial issues to consider:

  • Liquidity appears to have been slender at the latest year end
Established: 11 years

www.thebikeproject.co.uk

info@thebikeproject.co.uk

02077338098

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Financial Data ?

Income & Spending ?
Sources of Income ?
Y/E Income
£k
Spending
£k
Surplus/
Deficit
Fundraising
Cost £k
Total
Funds £k
Unrestricted
Funds £k
Mths
Rsrvs
Staff Volun-
teers
31/12/21£2,232£2,329£-96£337£103£1030.53598
31/12/20£1,771£1,763£8£244£199£1991.426187
31/12/19£1,194£1,154£39£79£192£192218137
31/12/18£717£729£-12£297£152£801.312300
31/12/17£579£522£57£178£164£922.110128
31/12/16£386£309£77n/an/an/an/an/a0
31/12/15£210£210£0n/an/an/an/an/a0
31/12/14£169£158£10n/an/an/an/an/a0
31/12/13£88£65£24n/an/an/an/an/a0

Financial Ratios
Fundraising Costs/Relevant Income: 15.5%
Fundraising Costs/Total Spending: 14.5%
Liabilities/Assets: 79%
Liabilities/Income: 17%
Unrestricted Funds/Total Funds: 100%
Reserves/Spending: 0.5 months
Net Current Assets/Spending: 0 months
Quick Ratio: 0.5
Asset Split ?
Comment: Though dependant on grants from trust and foundations, revenue and cost saving opportunities have been seen in their expansion of programmes to new cities and their in person retail options

Source: Giving is Great

What it does
  • Economic/Community Development/Employment
  • Education/Training
  • The Prevention Or Relief Of Poverty
The Bike Project aim to provide relief for those seeking asylum and those granted refugee status and their dependants who are in conditions of need, hardship or distress. They achieve this by collecting, repairing, and distributing second-hand bikes
Who works here?
  • 35 employees
  • 98 volunteers
Who it helps
  • Other Defined Groups
  • The General Public/Mankind
How it operates
  • Provides services
Where it operates
  • Throughout England And Wales,

Who's supporting them? ?

Donations from Grant Makers ?

We have details on the following significant donations. Multi-year donations are allocated to the years for which they are earmarked.

Major supporters in last 5 years
The National Lottery Community Fund£565,907
The Henry Smith Charity £243,000
City Bridge Trust£203,708
The Dulverton Trust£143,844
Comic Relief£111,219
The Charity of Sir Richard Whittington£75,000
London Borough of Southwark£60,808
The EQ Foundation£60,000
Specific Donations
Amount When
Months
To be used for
London Borough of Southwark
£15,404 31/03/2023
Common Purpose grant from the Environment, Neighbourhoods & Growth department
The National Lottery Community Fund
£459,972 02/02/2023
This funding will be used to expand its service of taking donated second-hand bicycles refurbishing them and donating them to refugees and asylum seekers. The project aims to provide new skills for ....more
The Michael And Betty Little Trust
£40,000 20/11/2022
Matching up refugees and asylum seekers without the means or money to travel around the city, with the thousands of abandoned or unwanted bikes in the UK
City Bridge Trust
£71,200 17/11/2022
24
£71,200 over two further and final years (£36,592, £34,608) towards the London Operations Manager’s salary alongside costs to undertake a recycling feasibility study in the first year.
The National Lottery Community Fund
£9,978 24/06/2022
The funding will be used to a deliver introduction to bike maintenance courses for refugees and asylum seekers to help develop their skills. Participants will then be given the opportunity to ....more
Sport England
£5,873 17/06/2022
This project will build a cycling community for refugees and their supporters in Coventry through a number of programmes and interventions.
The Henry Smith Charity
£108,000 17/05/2022
36
towards three years' running costs of a project which sources, repairs and donates bikes to refugees and asylum seekers, affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, across the UK.
The EQ Foundation
£20,000 15/05/2022
To increase the supply of bikes available for refugees
The EQ Foundation
£20,000 15/04/2022
Unrestricted
London Borough of Southwark
£15,404 31/03/2022
Common Purpose grant from the Environment & Leisure department
Garfield Weston Foundation
£25,000 26/11/2021
The Bike Project Expansion Programme
The Charity of Sir Richard Whittington
£75,000 01/07/2021
36
To scale up our work with refugees across London over a period of 3 years, including our programmes, social enterprise, and community involvement.
The Dulverton Trust
£105,000 09/06/2021
Bike Project in the West Midlands
Comic Relief
£70,000 28/04/2021
Refugees arrive in this country alone leaving their family and friends behind, not knowing if or when they will see them again. In a study by the Jo Cox Commission on Loneliness, 58% of refugees ....more
The EQ Foundation
£10,000 15/04/2021
Unrestricted
The National Lottery Community Fund
£9,677 19/03/2021
5
The funding will used to pilot a social action programme for 12 young refugees aged 18-25 using their experiences as cyclists to engage the wider community in cycling and refugee issues. The project ....more
The Henry Smith Charity
£135,000 18/03/2021
36
towards three years' continuation funding of the running costs of an organisation which sources, repairs and donates bikes to refugees and asylum seekers in London and the West Midlands.
Sport England
£6,130 22/01/2021
11
This project will provide weekly sessions of cycling and yoga sessions to women and girls aged 16+.
Barrow Cadbury Trust
£40,000 21/09/2020
6
To support cycling services for refugees and asylum seekers, including bike provision and training
The London Community Foundation
£19,433 17/09/2020
¢ Bike donations delivered directly to refugees with one-to-one follow-up support. ¢ Cyber Cyclists. Online programme providing activities and support for refugees ¢ Volunteer programme for people ....more
Comic Relief
£41,219 15/09/2020
This project, Pedal Power, will support female refugees to develop cycling skills in London. With the high cost of transport, refugees and asylum seekers are unable to access the services/amenities ....more
City Bridge Trust
£25,708 08/05/2020
A grant of £25,708 to fund the essential and urgent costs outlined in the application, so that the organisation can carry on providing support to Londoners.
Pears Foundation
£30,000 20/04/2020
24
Core funding
The EQ Foundation
£10,000 06/04/2020
Coronavirus appeal
London Borough of Southwark
£15,000 01/04/2020
Common Purpose grant from the Environment & Leisure department
The Rayne Foundation
£40,000 09/03/2020
24
Towards core costs to support the expansion of operations in the West Midlands and launching The Bike Project Roadshow in 2021.
AB Charitable Trust
£20,000 09/01/2020
An unrestricted grant of £20,000. The Bike Project matches refugees and asylum seekers with abandoned or unwanted bikes, which facilitates cheaper and easier travel to access services and activities.
City Bridge Trust
£106,800 26/09/2019
36
£106,800 over three years (£35,600 x 3) towards the salaries of the London Operations Manager (4 dpw) and a Bike Mechanic (2 dpw) for London delivery.
The Dulverton Trust
£28,844 12/06/2019
The Birmingham Bike Project
The Dulverton Trust
£10,000 12/06/2019
The Birmingham Bike project ? Big Give Christmas Challenge 2019
The National Lottery Community Fund
£9,990 23/05/2019
12
The funding will be used to deliver a biking buddies programme for refugees. The project aims to support refugees in building confidence with cycling.
London Borough of Southwark
£15,000 01/04/2019
Common Purpose grant from the Place & Wellbeing department
The National Lottery Community Fund
£76,290 19/02/2019
24
This group will collect and refurbish unwanted and abandoned bikes in London and donate them to refugees and asylum seekers in Birmingham. They will also run workshops and programmes to encourage ....more
Greater London Authority
£12,000 26/11/2018
Team London small grant 2018-19 - social integration
The National Lottery Community Fund
£374,978 22/11/2018
36
The project will help tackle mobility issues among refugees and asylum seekers -enabling them to access the resources and opportunities they need to build a new life for themselves and to feel ....more
AB Charitable Trust
£15,000 15/10/2018
£15,000 towards Birmingham Bike Project. The Bike Project takes on second-hand bikes, fixes them & then donates them to refugees & asylum seekers in London and Birmingham. Free transport can ....more
Lloyds Bank Foundation for England and Wales
£15,000 25/07/2018
12
The funding will support the costs of a Logistics Consultant and Retail Strategic to help the charity deliver their planned growth and expansion into additional workshop premises in Birmingham.
London Borough of Southwark
£15,000 01/04/2018
Community Capacity grant from the Place & Wellbeing department
The Leathersellers' Company Charitable Fund
£40,000 12/03/2018
48
Main Grant unrestricted core costs
The National Lottery Community Fund
£10,000 21/02/2018
12
The project will renovate and equip a new workshop for the charity to enable them to upscale their services. This will provide more bicycles for refugees and create more volunteering and training ....more
Pears Foundation
£30,000 31/01/2018
24
Core funding
Comic Relief
£55,908 19/07/2017
36
This project will support 120 female asylum seekers and refugees aged 14-65 to develop cycling skills. Through cycling, refugees have better access to vital services, experience increased social ....more
DCMS
£18,636 19/07/2017
This project will support 120 female asylum seekers and refugees aged 14-65 to develop cycling skills. Through cycling, refugees have better access to vital services, experience increased social ....more
DCMS
£18,636 19/07/2017
This project will support 120 female asylum seekers and refugees aged 14-65 to develop cycling skills. Through cycling, refugees have better access to vital services, experience increased social ....more
DCMS
£13,977 19/07/2017
This project will support 120 female asylum seekers and refugees aged 14-65 to develop cycling skills. Through cycling, refugees have better access to vital services, experience increased social ....more
DCMS
£13,977 19/07/2017
This project will support 120 female asylum seekers and refugees aged 14-65 to develop cycling skills. Through cycling, refugees have better access to vital services, experience increased social ....more
The Henry Smith Charity
£75,000 08/06/2017
36
towards three years' running costs of a project which sources, repairs and donates bikes to refugees and asylum seekers in London
The Rayne Foundation
£36,000 08/06/2017
24
Towards the core costs of a social enterprise that provides second-hand bikes to refugees and asylum seekers.
London Borough of Southwark
£15,000 01/04/2017
Community Capacity grant from the Housing & Modernisation department
London Borough of Southwark
£3,250 01/04/2017
Neighbourhoods Fund: Camberwell grant from the Housing & Modernisation department
City Bridge Trust
£40,000 08/11/2016
£40,000 over 12 months towards the salary of 1.5 FTE bike mechanics.
AB Charitable Trust
£15,000 25/10/2016
£15,000 towards core costs
The Tudor Trust
£75,000 11/10/2016
36
over three years as continuation funding towards the core costs of a charity working in London to refurbish and provide bikes for refugees and asylum seekers
The National Lottery Community Fund
£10,000 06/04/2016
12
The group will use the funding to provide cycle training for refugees that have received free bikes. This will allow beneficiaries to travel safely, improving their independence, access to services ....more
London Borough of Southwark
£15,000 01/04/2016
Community Capacity grant from the Housing & Modernisation department for Mechanics' salaries
Pears Foundation
£30,000 23/02/2016
24
Core funding
AB Charitable Trust
£15,000 20/10/2015
£15,000 towards core costs
The Tudor Trust
£40,000 24/04/2014
24
over two years towards core costs to support expansion of a project which provides refurbished bikes, bike maintenance training and bike mechanics courses to refugees and asylum seekers in London
Show more rows

Data sourced from Donors via 360 Giving

How do they operate?

Bike Donation Programme

Objectives: To take second-hand bikes, repair them and donate them to in need refugees

Beneficiaries: Refugees and asylum seekers

Description: The Bike Project delivers a bike directly to the refugee after they register on their wait list. The refugee is provided with all the essential cycle accessories: a helmet, lights, locks, high-visibility vest and gloves. They are also provided with basic tools to enable them to adjust the bike to ensure it is a good fit. Following delivery, the beneficiary receives an SMS with further guidance and a follow-up phone call from a mechanic. They have access to online road safety tutorials and are given a mobile contact number as well as being invited to an introductory session on cycling which covers safe road cycling and basic bike maintenance

Pedal Power Programme

Objectives: To provide cycle proficiency training in an all-female environment

Beneficiaries: Female refugees

Description: The programme provides free group cycling lessons for refugee women and was developed after it was found many female refugees come from countries where it is socially unacceptable for women to cycle. In person and online tuition is delivered in participants local areas, which provide the opportunity to increase their cycling knowledge and form supportive connections

Bike Buddies Programme

Objectives: To reduce isolation, encourage social integration and greater independence

Beneficiaries: Refugees and asylum seekers

Description: The programme recruits, trains and matches volunteers to asylum seekers and refugees, where they undertake cycling trips together, aimed at building confidence and knowledge of road cycling

Refugee Talent Development Opportunities

Objectives: To develop refugees UK work history, learn new skills and gain UK qualifications and accreditation

Description: Volunteers from the refugee community gain experience in The Bike Project workplace with talent development opportunities including involvement in fixing up bikes in the workshop, volunteering as cycle instructors and lending a hand to the office team. All volunteers are trained by staff to ensure they gain new skills alongside this vital experience in a UK work environment

How effective are they?
Outputs
Outcomes
Y/EBikes repaired and donated to refugees% of Refugees using bike 3 months after donation
31/12/20211,56893%
31/12/20201,40993%
31/12/20191,60490%
Commentary: Bike donations have enabled asylum seekers and refugees to make invaluable savings on their weekly government allowance. Given a London bus ticket currently costs a large percentage of their weekly allowance, this has significant impact on annual savings to beneficiaries
See what you could achieve with a donation of: £
How do we calculate this?

Who works here?

  • JEM STEIN
    Founder
    Appointed: March 2013
Jem is CEO and founded the charity in March 2013. After graduating from University, he spent time as a youth worker in his local Jewish community to work with children on issues like mental health and social action before founding The Bike Project.
  • NICOLA HILL
    Head of Impact
    Appointed: January 2019
Nicola has a mixed background of consulting, operational management, cycle programme delivery and migrant sector experience. She has been with the charity since June 2016 and began volunteering as an instructor at their cycle training for refugee women before taking up her role. She was also behind organising their Critical Mass bike ride to Calais in 2015.
  • SARAH AVERY
    Head of Operations
Sarah joined our organisation as Head of Operations and has been working with the team to organise and facilitate bike donations to refugees across both London and the West Midlands. Her role includes supporting the team with managing many drop-off points as well.
  • MUNA HUSSAN
    Head of Marketing and Fundraising
Muna brings a wealth of commercial marketing expertise to The Bike Project. Her previous roles include Global Planning Manager at MEC; Planning Director at Havas Media UK where she managed a team delivering communications and media strategies for a variety of brands including FinTech (PayPal), FMCG (Bird's Eye), Fashion (Lacoste) and entertainment (A&E Networks and Universal Music); and Marketing Manager at A&E Television. Crucially she ....more
Commentary: Due to increased demand for services and expansion to their Birmingham workshop over recent years, they have required new staff to handle core activities, shop growth and bike ride instructing projects. New bike mechanics, cycle instructors and translators have been recruited to assist the growth.

Their office has been closed since the middle of March 2020, and all office staff have been working from home. All office staff worked from home for at least one day per week before the crisis so everyone was already set up with laptops and can access everything remotely.

Source: Giving is Great

How is it governed?

Trustees (8)
Current Trustees appointed

Age Range of Trustees: 33-66
Legal constitution
  • Charitable company registered in England & Wales on 10/06/2013, number: 1152354
  • Registered at Companies House on 14/01/2013, number: 08359498
  • Registered with HMRC for Gift Aid
Policies in force
  • Complaints handling
  • Conflicting interests
  • Paying staff
  • Risk management
  • Safeguarding vulnerable beneficiaries
  • Volunteer management
Main office

3Space International House
7th Floor The Bike Project
Canterbury Crescent
Brixton
London
SW9 7QD

Objectives

(1) TO PROVIDE RELIEF FOR THOSE SEEKING ASYLUM AND THOSE GRANTED REFUGEE STATUS AND THEIR DEPENDANTS WHO ARE IN CONDITIONS OF NEED, HARDSHIP OR DISTRESS; (2) TO DEVELOP THE CAPACITY AND SKILLS OF SOCIALLY DISADVANTAGED COMMUNITIES IN SUCH A WAY THAT THEY ARE BETTER ABLE TO IDENTIFY, AND HELP MEET, THEIR NEEDS AND TO PARTICIPATE MORE FULLY IN SOCIETY; (3) TO ADVANCE THE EDUCATION OF ALL AGES OF THE PUBLIC IN THE SAFE USE, RE-USE AND MAINTENANCE OF BICYCLES; AND (4) THE PROTECTION AND PRESERVATION OF THE ENVIRONMENT IN PARTICULAR BY SAVING BICYCLES FROM LANDFILL AND PROMOTING BICYCLE RE-USE AND RECYCLING.

Defined Area of Benefit: LOCAL

Data Sources

Charity Commission for England and Wales
360 Giving
CharityBase

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