MOHAMMED is an asylum seeker from Iran. He now lives in Glasgow. Before he moved to Scotland, cycling was an integral part of his life which contributed enormously to his health and wellbeing. It was something he used to miss as a New Scot, and like many other migrants and refugees with little or no income, transport was a constant torment.

That was until Mohammed discovered the Bikes for All project, which has made monthly visits to the Central and West Integration Project at the Garnethill Multicultural Centre.

The project is hosted by Scottish charity Bike for Good, which was founded in July 2010 at a stall in Barras market.

The Glasgow-based social enterprise has described its aims as seeking to “improve physical and mental health, reduce carbon emissions and provide affordable transport by raising the profile of cycling.” For £3 a year, New Scots have been given access to nextbike cycle lessons, guided rides and hiring advice. Since July 2017, the scheme has generated 414 memberships, 10,253 journeys and over 500 sessions and events.

For Mohammed, it has been transformational: “I use the nextbike for everything: shopping, appointments. I visit friends and ride it for pleasure. It has made me healthier because I cycle everyday. I was always just walking before which I didn’t enjoy. But I feel happier cycling now.”

The charity is only one out of a whole host of community cycling associations that have been helping New Scots live a more fulfilling life. Just this month, Glasgow Life, a charity supported by Glasgow City Council, announced the award of £160,000 to 29 Scottish cycling groups through Go Cycle Glasgow. Bike for Good was one of them.

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In addition to its membership plan, the organisation has been hosting free bike lessons for refugees over the winter. The classes have been the latest instalment of the “New Scots Project”, a longstanding programme of activities funded by the National Lottery Fund and designed to support migrants by increasing their “independence, confidence and social networks.”

Skills and development trainer Alexis Morales told the Sunday National: “Mostly women attend the lessons but there are a few men. I see a lot of people coming because they use bikes as a form of transport. It’s not just for leisure or hobbies. Paying for a bus pass every month is not cheap.”

Bike for Good has held the weekly tutorials on Mondays and Wednesdays at its Glasgow West Community Hub in Kelvinhaugh as well as in the nearby Kelvingrove Park. It has also offered to pay travel expenses for all those in attendance and provided bikes and helmets free of charge.

Other sessions included in the project have involved “Fix Your Own” bike maintenance workshops which have taken place on Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

The 34-year-old instructor added: “People can use the skills to fix their own bikes, help friends and family or someone else close to them.”

He noted that the classes were useful for those looking for jobs requiring mechanical skills and helped those “struggling” to afford bike servicing fees.

Language did sometimes pose a challenge, but with the help of Google translate and the cosmopolitan expertise of those in attendance, he was usually understood.

The Glasgow Afghan Women’s Empowerment Project was another bike scheme to receive £10,000 in the funding round. The initiative has been rolled out by Glasgow Afghan United, an association assisting and representing Scotland’s Afghan community.

Its work has focused principally on helping women living in the north of the city and is supported by the Maryhill & Summerston Community Sports Hub.

Khalida Bostani, who coordinates the Women’s Empowerment Project, gave further insight: “Twenty-four women asylum seekers and refugees benefit from cycling and between 12 to 14 children. Many have suffered from isolation or loneliness.

“The Go Cycle Glasgow fund will invest in learning and training to develop and empower a strong female volunteer workforce with cycling leadership skills, who can confidently deliver activities to their peers, families and children and help build stronger, healthy, active and thriving communities.”

Another one of Scotland’s most fervent champions of cycling Scottish communities is Steven McCluskey and his charity, Bikes for Refugees (BFR).

Just before Christmas last year, McCluskey’s team were able to celebrate a “milestone” achievement. They had just handed out their 2000th bike.

Bikes for Refugees’ “core activity” has been to fix and refurbish donated bikes which are then given to migrants along with a “New Scots Welcome Pack”.

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For the driven former NHS worker, the bikes were really only an exterior: “Usually when I’m talking about BfR, I actually describe it less and less as a cycling project. It’s really about the impact that bikes can have on people’s daily lives. Supporting people’s resettlement.

“It’s also very much an equalities and human rights issue because it supports people to access essential public services – an equal right to be able to access.”

Explaining his inspiration, he added: “Five and a half years ago I met Yaman who was a young asylum seeker from Syria. Myself and Yaman became friends.

“Yaman bought himself an old beat-up bicycle from Gumtree, what we sometimes call a ‘bike-shaped object’. I took Yaman to his local bike shop in Leith where I was living at the time. The bike wasn’t worth repairing but the guy who ran the shop gave a bike to Yaman.

“I noticed how a simple thing, a bicycle, made a big difference, really helped Yaman on a daily basis.”

The Go Cycle Glasgow fund is aiming to capitalise on the 2023 UCI Cycling World Champions – which Glasgow is helping to host.