Blackburn and Darwen jobseekers loaned bikes to get to job interviews

9:55am Monday 11th March 2013 in East Lancashire

JOBSEEKERS in Blackburn with Darwen will now be able to ‘get on their bikes’ thanks to a council scheme.

The borough’s CONNECT programme has donated two cycles to local charity Bootstrap to help people get to and from job interviews.

The project, which received £1.4 million from the Department for Transport, aims to promote healthier ‘green’ travel including walking, cycling, car sharing and public transport.

The latest grant echoes then Tory Cabinet Minister Norman Tebbit’s famous 1981 call for the jobless to ‘get on their bikes’ and look for work.

Bootstrap has more than 100 staff supporting employment, enterprise, skills, training, the disabled, and social care.

Two bikes have been donated, along with six helmets, two locks and high visibility accessories.

Clients will use the bikes to travel to work interviews and can then use them for a month in their new job.

Borough regeneration boss Dave Harling, said: “This is a brilliant and innovative way for people to get to job interviews while taking advantage of sustainable ways of travel.

“Hopefully those who gain employment through Bootstrap will continue to fly the flag for sustainable travel and can convince their new colleagues to do the same.”

Bootstrap chief executive Elizabeth Taylor said: “The bikes provided by the Connect Project will enable Bootstrap clients to trial cycling as a transport option.”

Comments(21)

chris283 says...
10:01am Mon 11 Mar 13

and what happens if the bikes get stolen does the person have to pay for it bet no one has asked that question i bet on your bike hahahaha

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burner says...
10:54am Mon 11 Mar 13

Jobseeker numbers will be reduced when these people ( who, by definition don't ride bikes ) get slaughtered on the roads by falling into all the deep potholes Or by careless or reckless cycling.
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plus . . . . . useful for a job interview down South.
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I always thought Dave Harling was short of a lot of brain cells - this proves it.

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chris283 says...
11:31am Mon 11 Mar 13

burner i agree how many bikes is it 2 hahahaha what a load of tosh . I do own a mountainbike and i have been using it for job interviews it still did not get me a job though what a waste of a news story

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juanbbien says...
11:52am Mon 11 Mar 13

Bloody hell I thought I had heard it all,who dreams these thing up,so you have an interview the weather is terrible rain,snow whatever you try and make your self presentable,but by the time you arrive at your destination your are sweaty,soaked to the skin and completely dishelved, not a good start to impress someone and not to mention the safety aspect of this scheme and do you need a medical to see if you are actually fit to cycle x number of miles.The mind boggles

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I_Love_Mommy says...
12:11pm Mon 11 Mar 13

Why not go the whole hog and paint them fluorescent Orange with an 'unemployed flag' attached to the rear mudguard...

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The Aardvark says...
12:53pm Mon 11 Mar 13

If someone really wants a job that badly they will find any means of getting to the interview and they will do their best to get that job. This scheme would give people another option that would make life a bit easier for them, and would give them the benefit of being able to actually LOOK for work independently in their local area. On the other hand, there are many people who would much rather sleep in and force themselves to go to the compulsory job interviews set up by the job centre with no intention of actually getting work. So, for those who are rely on public transport who don’t have a lot of money and genuinely get up every morning with every intention of finding work who spend every minute of the day doing all they can to get work, this could be a huge help to them. However, there will always be those who are too bone-idled or too ignorant to appreciate that this is set up to HELP people. Sadly enough, nowadays the hard-working individual is now a minority.

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peely says...
1:00pm Mon 11 Mar 13

I_Love_Mommy wrote:
Why not go the whole hog and paint them fluorescent Orange with an 'unemployed flag' attached to the rear mudguard...
Like it ! Very funny !

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shytalk says...
1:05pm Mon 11 Mar 13

Don't knock it..Anyone who is desperate to find a job is happy to recieve whatever help they can get..Lets face it this is more help than anyone ever gets at the jobcentre. What do people want the loan of a BMW to get to a job interview?

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happycyclist says...
1:39pm Mon 11 Mar 13

shytalk wrote:
Don't knock it..Anyone who is desperate to find a job is happy to recieve whatever help they can get..Lets face it this is more help than anyone ever gets at the jobcentre. What do people want the loan of a BMW to get to a job interview?
For some people and some jobs, a BMW would be a far better idea.

Punctures? Mechanical problems? And as Chris283 says, what if they get nicked/sold down the pub? A daft idea. Bus fares to interviews would be a lot more helpful.

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chris283 says...
2:27pm Mon 11 Mar 13

ardvark your so full of crap i been looking for a full time job for 2 yrs and i have a mountain bike and i do go to interviews on it except when its raining of course and the jobcenter what was it they said to my friend it is not our job to get him a job which i thought thats strange why are we paying these job center staff useless the lot of them

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useyourhead says...
5:05pm Mon 11 Mar 13

Bootstrap regularly sends people to inappropriate interviews, even if your offered the job you have to decline, my daughter casually mentioned she was taking her driving test three months hence and low and behold was told she had to attend three interviews for driving jobs the week after. They sent her to night shift job interviews when she has no possibility of overnight care for her son, all these interviews were a good few miles away and it is disheartening and irritating to get dressed, pay for transport to go to these interviews knowing full well the jobs not suitable, i'm sure they just do it to fill quotas.

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Stop Backenders says...
5:58pm Mon 11 Mar 13

The councillors and job centre staff could give their travel expenses up and show us how it is done first with their fantastic connect scheme that they seem to be forcing onto every one?Its all spin. lol

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Stone Island: says...
6:33pm Mon 11 Mar 13

chris283 wrote:
ardvark your so full of crap i been looking for a full time job for 2 yrs and i have a mountain bike and i do go to interviews on it except when its raining of course and the jobcenter what was it they said to my friend it is not our job to get him a job which i thought thats strange why are we paying these job center staff useless the lot of them
If you are looking for office type jobs, or jobs that require a lot of paperwork, it's obvious why you are still looking after two years. Have you considered something like leaflet distribution? Or maybe you could deliver newspapers or catalogs? You could really put your skills of riding a mountain bike to good use. Be sure to wear your helmet though.

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2 for 5p says...
7:24pm Mon 11 Mar 13

So if the job is tat far away that you need help getting to the interview. What are they going to do if they get the job. Do you suggest they are lent a bike for the first couple of months until they can afford to buy one themselves. Ha :-)

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chris283 says...
10:34pm Mon 11 Mar 13

stone island i did not say i did not work i do but only part time so do not come on here spouting your crap if u read proper i said i am looking i didnt say i wernt clown

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Fire Fly says...
10:39pm Mon 11 Mar 13

I'd love a job where I'd get paid for coming up with hair brained idea's like this one!!

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Stone Island: says...
11:04pm Mon 11 Mar 13

chris283 wrote:
stone island i did not say i did not work i do but only part time so do not come on here spouting your crap if u read proper i said i am looking i didnt say i wernt clown
You simpleton.

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Major Tom says...
12:25am Tue 12 Mar 13

And I bet they'll be seen outside many a pub at lunch time. Blackbun with Darwin gets more like idiot central everyday.

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chris283 says...
10:52am Tue 12 Mar 13

stone island why on earth would you use the same name as clothing hahahahah what a dumbo lol

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chris283 says...
10:52am Tue 12 Mar 13

stone island why on earth would you use the same name as clothing hahahahah what a dumbo lol

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The Aardvark says...
12:40pm Tue 12 Mar 13

chris283 wrote:
ardvark your so full of crap i been looking for a full time job for 2 yrs and i have a mountain bike and i do go to interviews on it except when its raining of course and the jobcenter what was it they said to my friend it is not our job to get him a job which i thought thats strange why are we paying these job center staff useless the lot of them
Maybe you need to do some sort of English exam to correct your punctuation and then you might just be able to write CV that doesn't make you sound like the sort of person who employers avoid because they can't spell their name right.

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