Islington council offers full day cycle maintenance courses on the last Sunday of every other month.
These courses cover the basics of cycle maintenance and are a great place to start if you are new to cycle maintenance or you need to brush up on your skills.
Course syllabus
M-Check
Puncture repair
One of the most important skills in cycle maintenance
- Identify tyre types/sizes/valves, reasons for punctures
- Participants will remove front wheel, tube and tyre then re-fit
- Participants will practice patch repair on tubes provided
Brakes
- Identify brake types, wear, adjustment and replacement
Gears
- Indexing, limit screws
- Chain cleaning tutorial
Course dates, location and booking
|
Venue |
Dates |
Times |
Book |
|
Birchmore Hall, N5 2UA |
Sunday 16 August 2026 Sunday 27 September 2026 Sunday 29 November 2026 |
10am- 3pm* 10am-3pm* 10am- 3pm* |
|
*Course format includes a 1 hr lunch break
If these sessions are fully booked, please contact us to be put onto our waiting list.
Other cycle maintenance workshops
Some local borough cycling groups also run cycle maintenance workshops. These are often volunteer-led, and can offer you advice and help to maintain your own cycle:
- Hackney Bike Workshop (two evenings a month)
- Kentish Town Bike Workshop (first Wednesday of the month)
Note: The two courses listed above are not run by or affiliated to Islington Council
Cycle mechanic qualifications – the next steps
Islington Adult Learning & Skills offers FREE accredited City & Guilds Level One and Level 2 Cycle Mechanic awards from its fully stocked workshop in Holloway. Take your maintenance skills to the next level and gain a recognised qualification to help you take steps towards employment in the cycling sector.
To be eligible for these free courses, you must be 19 or over, live in London and either be unemployed or earning less than £28,860.
Please check out their website for more information and to sign up: Cycle Mechanics L1 (Cohort 1 2627) Adult Learning and Skills
Learn to fix it from a book
If you can’t make it to one of our courses, but still want to try some home maintenance, have a look at the Basic Bicycle Maintenance Manual provided free from the London Cyclist.
