Wythenshawe’s Simply Cycling put off track by a year for park redevelopments

Simply Cycling, a Manchester charity organisation, is about to be relocated and taken off their usual track for 12 months, following planning approvals to redevelop Wythenshawe Park.

Simply Cycling, a small self-funded charity, will be forced to leave its regular track while construction takes place on new facilities including a café, cycle hub, changing rooms and a GP clinic. The charity says it has not been provided with a suitable alternative location to continue its sessions during the redevelopment.

The Wythenshawe Park site is Simply Cycling’s main base, hosting between 300 and 400 riders each week. Many users rely on specialist adapted bikes and enclosed spaces to cycle safely.

Liz, a board member of Simply Cycling, said communication with the council had been frustrating.

“We were banging our heads against a brick wall — no one was listening,” she said. “Then suddenly at the planning meeting they said they’d try to sort something out, but I don’t believe them.”

While Liz said she supports the redevelopment of the park, she believes the charity has been sidelined. “I’m not against what’s happening at Wythenshawe Park, but they can’t just ignore us,” she said.

Simply Cycling has three locations: one in Wythenshawe, one in Stretford, and one in Boggart Hole Clough in north Manchester. The council suggested to the management that users attend another location during the closure of the track, but transport is a major barrier.

“Often, our users don’t have transport,” Liz said, warning that moving the sessions elsewhere could exclude many riders entirely.

Many riders travel with carers or family members and depend on the enclosed track for safety, and some users have complex needs.

“Sometimes we have very vulnerable young people who need three or four carers with them,” she said. “Children with autism need an enclosed, safe space for fresh air. Some of these kids don’t get outside all week until they come to us.”

She said the charity had suggested practical alternatives, including installing a temporary track within the park. “I’m sure they could put down a temporary track, like they do for lorries,” she said.

Simply Cycling previously funded and installed its own kitchen near the track to provide hot drinks for riders, further embedding the charity at the site. Liz said there has been no further contact from the council to discuss how the charity could be accommodated once redevelopment begins.

The charity has some funding received from Health Inequalities or Active Travel, but other than that it is just from user funding through a small fee, meaning closure for a year would cost a significant amount to keep the charity afloat.

There has been a gap in the understanding between how the facilities are used by cyclists, Liz saying that bikes could not fit in the new gate.

At a planning meeting in December, Councillor Joan Davies acknowledged the potential impact of the closure, stating that “temporary failure to provide disabled people with exercise can have a permanent effect on vulnerable people.”

Liz fears that a prolonged shutdown could permanently damage the charity. “You can’t stop something for a year and expect people to come back,” she said.

Manchester City Council were contacted for comment.