Disadvantaged youth in Malawi are set to be the recipients of a special donation, with 50 bikes repaired by Lewisham cycle-enthusiasts to make their way to the African continent.
The scheme, geared towards bringing together young people and educating them about bike maintenance, is part of the Young Lewisham Project , a set of “alternative educational courses” for young people in the area.
The group of 12 have been working over the past two years to repair unwanted or stolen bikes for people in Malawi.
The Forest Hill project meets every Saturday and now has 30 bikes ready to send. Founder Dave Newman spoke to Eastlondonlines about their progress: “We will now be looking for some more [bikes]… [They] make a huge difference to people in Africa, enabling young people to get to school and people to take things to market.”
Among those who have donated to the scheme is the Perry Vill Safer Neighbourhood Team in Lewisham. The team said: “We are really pleased that we are able to donate these bikes to such a worthy programme. The majority of them have come from a pool of those that we have recovered that were reported lost or stolen which the owners failed to claim.”
The scheme was inspired by “The Boy Who Flies” documentary, which Newman saw at a film festival. “It is a very inspirational film… We contacted the young guy in Malawi who is in the DVD and the rest is history,” he said.
