In celebration of Her Outdoors Week, Meath Travellers Workshop, in collaboration with Meath Local Sports Partnership and Sport Ireland, successfully delivered a week-long Cycle Safety Life Skills Course to a group of five young girls from the Traveller community.

This empowering initiative focused on developing essential cycling skills, with an emphasis on safety, awareness, and independence. The comprehensive course covered a range of topics including safe cycling practices, identifying and avoiding potential hazards on the road, proper use of safety equipment, and basic bicycle maintenance.

The course was led by Dudley Farrell, a respected figure in Meath’s sporting community, who brought his expertise and encouragement to the group throughout the week. milestone — marking a memorable highlight of their training. Marian Osbourne Education Officer for Meath Travellers supported and mentored the girls throughout the week.

The initiative was funded as part of the RTÉ Toy Show Appeal 2025, which enabled each of the participants to receive a brand new bicycle. These bikes not only facilitated their learning during the course but will continue to support active, healthy lifestyles for years to come.

Marina Cunningham, Manager at Meath Travellers Workshop, commented:

“This programme is about more than just cycling — it’s about building confidence, promoting safety, and ensuring young Traveller girls have access to the same opportunities for participation and enjoyment in sport as everyone else. We are proud of what they’ve achieved.”

This programme forms part of Meath Travellers Workshop’s ongoing commitment to inclusion, health promotion, and youth development within the Traveller community, supported by local partnerships and national initiatives

like Her Outdoors Week. HER Outdoors week aims to celebrate and encourage more females to get out and enjoy the benefits of being in the outdoors while bringing visibility to the opportunities for females to get involved in outdoor physical activity. This week is all about providing more opportunities for ALL females to escape to the outdoors and try something new. As part of the programme, the girls set themselves a personal challenge: to complete a 10-kilometre cycle on the Greenway at Wilkinstown. With determination and new-found confidence, they proudly achieved this.

Meath Travellers Workshop wishes to thank Meath Local Sports Partnership for their support and encouragement on this and many other programmes

This project is funded as part of the RTE Toy Show Appeal, Community Foundation of Ireland