A FREE family cycle ride is to take place next month.

The six-mile Little Ride which takes place on Sunday, May 1 will be the centrepiece of the Stanley Family Cycle Day.

Organisers say they have now secured funding through Stanley Town Council to make the event free of charge.

The ride will set off from Oakey Park in Stanley at 9.45am and is aimed at children under the age of 14 accompanied by a responsible adult.

It will follow a route along the recently-refurbished C2C cycle route to Beamish, with a rest point half way along the route where the youngsters can hone the bike skills in with the council’s Cycle Proficiency team, before returning to the finish line in Oakey Park where they can collect their event T-shirt.

Council chairman Cllr Joan Nicholson said: “This ride is very much geared to the youngsters in the town and surrounding area.

“This is just part of what we are doing for the town and we hope families will get behind this and other events throughout the year.”

Event organiser Colin Wilkes said: “This is an ideal way to not only introduce the cycle ways around the Stanley area to a wider audience but also to introduce the joys of cycling as a fun form of exercise to youngsters as part of a family day out.

“People still need to ‘sign up’ so we know how many to expect – although there will be a limited amount of on the day spaces available.

“We are most grateful to our supporters for providing the support so that we can offer a great day without charge.”

Along with the ride, there will be other stalls including bike protection marking by the local police and also some advice on healthy lifestyle.

For more information or to register for your place, please go to www.durhambigride.co.uk or visit the facebook page: Stanley Family Cycle