ABOUT
US
First and foremost we are an independent bike shop providing a first class service to YOU, our valued customers based at UoB, serving Edgbaston, Selly Oak, Harborne and Beyond. Offering a full range of professional bike servicing and repairs via our industry standard CYTECH qualified mechanics, all geared up to keeping you going on two wheels.
More than just a bike shop
Gear Up is a Social Enterprise established in 2012 that was originally born out of a desire to utilise the skills, passion and talents of a small group of young people, working with Worth Unlimited a Youth and Community charity. As the enterprise developed, we saw the potential for cycling and training to make a lasting, wider impact on the lives of disadvantaged young people facing unemployment alongside inactive lifestyles and living in deprived neighbourhoods.
Gear Up engages these young people through our ‘Cycle, Fix and Teach’ strategy to enable them to obtain employment, and discover what their gifts, skills and passions are.
We are committed to maximising our social impact as follows:
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To use cycling as a means to engage marginalised young people in positive activity, life skills education, training and apprenticeships which hopefully leads to employment;
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To provide affordable cycling to deprived local communities and marginalised groups through our recycle bike scheme;
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To encourage greater participation in cycling by providing access to our led rides and cycle training which can improve people’s health and wellbeing; and
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To support businesses to be greener by providing Cycle 2 Work schemes and offering assistance to businesses seeking to improve cycling participation within their workforce (sustainable travel).
The key areas of Gear Up are:
Service and Training Center and Uni of Birmingham Cycle Hub :
Our shops provide a full range of professional servicing and repairs, sells new and recycled bikes and acts as the gateway to our other services (led rides, workshops and training).
Business Services:
We work with local businesses to support sustainable travel and employee wellbeing, through Cycle 2 Work schemes and corporate bike days.
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Youth and Community Work:
We are passionate about bikes and cycling but we are even more passionate about young people and the communities they grow up in. We work with a number of local schools to offer placements and mentoring alongside mechanics workshops to offer young people bespoke 1:1 support.
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Community Cycle Club:
Affiliated to Cycling UK, our community Cycle club is all about giving people the opportunity to get out and about on two wheels, meet new people and enjoy all the benefits of cycling in a group. We run a weekly ride on a Saturday morning at 8am aimed at the regular road cyclist, a mid-week group giving people an introduction to cycling, run by our female ride leaders, and also a family ride once a month.
gear-up.cc
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You can find out more about the great work of Worth Unlimited by clicking their logo.
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Birmingham Business Charter for Social Responsibility
Gear Up is proud to have met the criteria to be awarded the Birmingham Business Charter for Social Responsibility,
meaning that we follow the principles of the charter as follows:
• Local Employment
• Buy Birmingham First
• Partners in Communities
• Good Employer
• Green and Sustainable
• Ethical Procurement
