A DIY bicycle workshop has been given a Government subsidy that it hopes will make the city’s roads safer.

Broken Spoke Bike Co-op has joined a nationwide scheme to get people back on their bikes and has been handed just under £2,000 to help make it happen.

For two weeks from Saturday, the workshop in Pembroke Street will offer discounted cycle training sessions, as well as advice and tools to repair people’s bikes.

Broken Spoke director Sam Chappell said: “We have been able to get a large subsidy for our cycle training programme.

“It’s for anyone who feels like they need some help, maybe those who can’t balance on the bike or those who might feel uncomfortable on Oxfordshire’s roads.

“It’s about trying to remove the uncertainty we see from a lot of people on the roads.”

The UK’s Big Bike Revival, led by cycling charity Cyclists’ Touring Club, is supported by the Department for Transport and delivered in partnerships with bike recycling centres – like Broken Spoke – across the UK.

A one-on-one two hour session at the Oxford shop for those who have either not ridden a bike in a while, or have never taken to the roads at all, normally costs £70.

From Saturday until June 7 that same tuition will set you back just £5.

Mr Chappell said that with plenty of work to come to improve the city’s infrastructure, educating cyclists to be safer was vital.

He said: “Infrastructure projects such as The Plain Roundabout and Frideswide Square are great, but there is need for a lot of them.

“It will probably take a decade or two for it to feel like it’s brilliant for cyclists.

“There will always be buses and cars sharing the roads with cyclists anyway and behavioural changes are fundamental.”

Mr Chappell said he hoped the scheme would lead to more funding boosts to continue the co-op’s work increasing the number of cyclists on our roads and improving their safety. The scheme will also encourage people to repair their old bikes and get back on the road.

Drop-in repair workshops – which the co-op holds regularly on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays – will give people access to the appropriate tools and the best advice to make their bikes roadworthy.

The shop’s women and transgender group, Team Beryl, will be using some of the money to host a night of cycling taster sessions and mechanical advice.

Entry for Beryl’s Night on June 4 will be free from 6pm to 9pm.