Hannah Uttley looks at key examples of how employers have increased exposure and take-up of cycle to work schemes.
Charity events are an important way of tying in cycle to work scheme communication and can help support an organisation's corporate responsibility mission statement.
At Zodiac Seats UK, employees already organised their own charity cycle ride, but payroll manager Gareth Welch said that it made sense to tie this into the company's cycle to work scheme when it was introduced to the workforce.
"The charity event was in conjunction with Macmillan Cancer because in the last couple of years one of the employees has done the ride off their own back but there hasn't been much sponsorship from the company as such," says Welch.
"But the most recent bike ride has been on a much bigger scale and they've raised about £20,000 in total and they had about 150 riders."
Zodiac Seats, formally known as Contour, introduced the scheme after it was bought out by French aircraft interiors specialist Zodiac Aerospace, an organisation which has a culture much more aligned to its own, according to Welch.
"As a company we are trying to do a lot more like this going forward and perhaps create a better atmosphere within the workplace. The fact that employees think the company cares and is prepared to lay on some extra benefits for them helps," he explains.
"They've never had it in the past because previously we were owned by RBS and they were more money orientated I suppose, but we're now owned by Zodiac Aerospace and they've got a different mentality with regards to the workforce and you can tell people feel a bit more upbeat about things."
