The cycle-to-work scheme is a worthwhile investment for many companies, as it helps a business to become a better employer and a greener organisation. In this article from NipNip, you can discover how to implement the cycle-to-work scheme in your company successfully.

What to Know About Cycle-to-Work Schemes

The cycle-to-work scheme is a government-approved employee benefit that allows staff to affordably purchase a bicycle and other relevant equipment. Essentially, the employer will pay for the bike and the equipment, which the employee will pay back to their employer through deductions in their salary. This payment is taken from an employee’s gross salary, meaning they save money on income tax and National Insurance by investing.

The Benefits of Cycle-to-Work Schemes

If you’re looking for a new way to bring an employee benefit into your workplace, the cycle-to-work scheme could be the perfect solution. In this section, you can uncover the benefits of implementing the cycle-to-work scheme.

Physical Fitness

As office work often requires extended periods of sitting throughout the day, it can be difficult for employees to find a way to fit physical activity into their daily routine. Should employees choose to cycle to work in the morning and home again in the evening, this is a great way to get in exercise easily. Exercise and physical activity can help to boost a person’s mood.

Improved Mental Health

Mental health is important and can have a direct impact on the productivity of a workplace. Often, staff suffer a direct impact of stressful working conditions on their mental health. As an employer, it’s important to help your employees manage their mental health to improve overall staff happiness, which can include recommending exercise such as cycling for their wellbeing.

Financial Benefits for Employees

Buying a bicycle and its accessories outright can be expensive, making it difficult for staff to do. With the cycle-to-work scheme, a bicycle becomes more affordable to an employee. Additionally, the tax advantages of the cycle-to-work scheme can incentivise the project to employees.

Enhanced Brand Image

Appealing to both potential employees and potential customers is an important part of running a successful business. To do so, you will need to invest in enhancing your brand image. Any potential employee will want to feel secure that the hiring business is a good place to work, with evidence of their care for their current staff. Customers, meanwhile, may want to shop with a brand that is making a conscious effort to reduce its operational environmental impact.

Environmental Benefits

By introducing a cycle-to-work scheme to your workplace, it’s more likely that your employees will reduce their use of less environmentally friendly methods of transportation. Rather than driving to work in a car, bicycle riding is a great alternative for many employees and is better for the environment.

Potential Challenges

Before implementing a cycle-to-work scheme, it can be helpful to know exactly what challenges you might face during the process. Below, you can discover some of the challenges that companies can face as they implement cycle-to-work bikes.

Employee Participation

Once you have implemented the cycle-to-work scheme, it’s important to get employees involved. In some cases, however, this can be a challenging process. By explaining the variety of bikes available, including foldable bicycles, employees may be more likely to become interested in the scheme.

Maintaining Interest

After engaging many staff members for the cycle-to-work scheme originally, you might find it difficult to retain these employees in the scheme after a few years. To maintain interest, adding additional benefits and different services can be a great idea. Introducing servicing sessions for the bikes and fun bicycle-themed events, for example, can be a great idea.

Concerns about Safety

Bicycle accidents can happen, unfortunately, making this a concern for employers who have implemented the cycle-to-work scheme. Bicycle accidents can happen when the bicycle itself malfunctions. It can be helpful to provide a way for your staff to have their bikes serviced, to ensure that they’re fully functional.

How to Set Up a Cycle-to-Work Scheme

If you’re interested in implementing the cycle-to-work scheme in your organisation, it’s important to know how to set it up as successfully as possible. In this section, you can discover how to set up cycle-to-work bikes in your workplace.

Install Relevant Structures

If you don’t already have a bicycle storage area, it’s important to get the structures installed as a place for your employees to store their bikes safely out of harm’s way while they work. Having these structures can help to incentivise the use of the scheme, as your employees can feel more certain about the investment.

Communicate with Employees

Raising awareness of the new scheme can help it to grow successfully. Before the scheme begins, it’s key to inform your employees. Using methods such as posters, emails and mentions in meetings can help to ensure your employees are all aware of the new scheme.

Launch Your Scheme

Once your employees are all informed of the cycle-to-work bikes, you should be ready to implement the scheme. It’s important to carefully organise who is taking advantage of the scheme, to ensure that deductions from an employee’s salary are carried out correctly.

Monitor and Review Participation

After you have implemented the scheme into your workplace, it’s important to see how well it’s performing. By taking note of the participation, you can get a sense of how well your employees are engaging with the scheme.

Our Services at NipNip

Based in London, our team at NipNip offers corporate services, designed to assist companies in helping their employees manage cycle-to-work bikes. Our business began in 2013, offering bike repairs and servicing to local customers. Read on to find out more about these services.

Bicycle Services

If your employees are using the cycle-to-work scheme, they will likely be using their bikes a lot. Offering a way for employees to help their bikes get serviced while they’re in the office is a great solution, further encouraging staff to stay invested in the scheme. Our services are thorough and set up in your cycle parking area, making them high-quality yet easily accessible to all staff members.

Get in Touch

Please visit our website to discover more about us at NipNip. Online, you can read more of our helpful blog posts and further information. Alternatively, please contact us directly to arrange a meeting or to find out more.