what a year of building changed.
Bamboo Mobility Project CIC is the social-enterprise arm of Bamboo Bicycle Club: accredited hands-on engineering in schools, youth settings and prisons, funded by the bikes our community builds. This is an honest interim account of where the work stands — what we can evidence, what we're building, and what we don't claim.
the national picture we work against.
Nationally, just 20% of prison-leavers are in work six weeks after release (MoJ offender employment outcomes, 2024–25), and the proven reoffending rate is almost 30% (MoJ, 2024). The strongest published levers are employment and family ties — Ministry of Justice research found prisoners who receive family visits are 39% less likely to reoffend (Farmer Review, 2017). Both of our programmes are built around that evidence.
one craft, two arms.
build to bond — prisons
A six-week bamboo bike-building course inside prison workshops. Makers earn an OCN London Level 2 in Workshop Skills and Sustainable Manufacturing and finish by presenting the balance bike they built to their own child on family visit day. Build to Bond is established across four UK prison sites, at different delivery stages. It runs on a self-delivery model that trains staff and peer instructors to run the workshop.
make engineers — schools & youth
Curriculum-mapped engineering programmes for ages 11–19, from a free bamboo-speaker taster to a full bamboo gravel frame — built to the same standard as our OCN London accredited courses. 1,500+ young people reached to date through builds, tasters and talks.
In partnership with HM Prison & Probation Service
what others say about the work.
“Innovative projects, such as Build to Bond, support rehabilitation and help people leave prison as better citizens, boosting the economy and keeping our streets safe.”
Lord Timpson, Prisons Minister — Financial Times, September 2025
“A truly inspiring cohort, delivering meaningful impact in the community.”
Ruth Leas, CEO, Investec Bank · Investec Beyond Business 2025
Build to Bond is supported by The National Lottery Community Fund. Bamboo Bicycle Club is an Investec Beyond Business 2025 winner.
what we measure — and what we don't claim.
We track course completion (90%+, BBC programme records) and accredited qualifications for every prison cohort — two OCN London Level 2 courses, Workshop Skills and Sustainable Manufacturing and Introduction to Product Design & Manufacture (Bamboo Balance Bike) — and participant confidence, which rose a measured 26% across evaluated cohorts (BBC programme surveys). We do not publish outcome claims we cannot evidence: no return-on-investment figures, no reoffending attribution. Where our numbers improve on the national picture, we say so with sources; where we don't yet know, we say that too.
what we're building next.
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codify delivery
Turn Build to Bond into a fully documented, turnkey programme — session plans, worksheets and instructor training — so new sites can run it without us in the room.
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measure what matters
Introduce a simple pre/post participant measure across both arms, so next year's report can show change in confidence and skills — not just completion.
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follow makers beyond the gate
Build the follow-up that tells us what happens after release and after school — progression into work, education and training.
help write next year's report.
Fund a cohort, commission the programme, or build a bike that funds a Maker's place.