New £90k Mountain Biking Trail Therapy Hub to open in the Scottish Borders

Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland (DMBinS) and California based organisation, Outride, have partnered to expand access to trail-based mental health interventions in the Scottish Borders.

A new Trail Therapy Hub will be available from this autumn, initially focusing on those supporting people aged 55 and over. This model is already being delivered in a number of hub locations across Scotland, with international hubs in Norway and Switzerland, supporting people of all ages experiencing mental and physical ill health.

This collaboration combines DMBinS pioneering Trail Therapy model with Outride’s focus on the social, emotional, and cognitive benefits of cycling.

Outride’s support of the project was made possible in part by the Shifting Gears on Brain Health Fund, in addition to its partnership with Specialized Bicycle Components. Total support for the project, including bikes, is valued at £90K. This funding will enable the project to mentor, support and train a small cohort of Trail Therapy Practitioners and supporting assistants through mountain bike leadership qualifications, first aid and safeguarding alongside the formal Trail Therapy Practitioner training itself.

We are incredibly excited about this collaboration between Outride and Developing Mountain Biking in Scotland, as DMBinS is truly leading the way with their innovative Trail Therapy approach. This is also a unique opportunity to expand our work to reach more people and to investigate how the bike can continue to serve as a powerful tool for mental and emotional wellbeing across all ages – Esther Walker, Outride

DMBinS and Outride share a deep belief in the transformative power of cycling, both on and off the trail. By combining DMBinS innovative Trail Therapy model and Outride’s research-driven approach, the partnership is uniquely positioned to advance inclusive, evidence-based mental health interventions in the Scottish Borders. This collaboration not only strengthens both organisations’ missions but also opens new pathways for understanding how trail-based experiences can support mental health across the lifespan.

Outride says this partnership marks a significant and exciting expansion of its work. While the organisation has historically focused on youth programming to support social, emotional, and cognitive development, this initiative represents a step towards exploring the benefits of cycling later in life.

This is a truly exciting partnership for us. Our original, small-scale pilot for Trail Therapy took place in the Tweed Valley in 2018 and from that initiative we have expanded across Scotland and now have Hubs in Norway and Switzerland too. Now with the amazing funding from Outride, we can finally come full circle, back to the Tweed Valley to support those in the Scottish Borders, where we first started.

This collaboration is so important, it means we will now be in a position to offer this transformative intervention that links physical and mental wellbeing, authentic risk and the joys of getting out into nature, all through the power of the mountain bike, to a wider demographic.

We have already begun the process of mentoring and training the first cohort of practitioners, a motivated and amazing group of people, determined to get Trail Therapy activity into the Scottish Borders through the newly created Tweed Valley Trail Therapy Hub.

The project will be independently evaluated by Edinburgh Napier University which will be vital in understanding the impact of the project and supporting further recognition of Trail Therapy. In turn, helping us to work with more communities across Scotland to develop their own Trail Therapy projects – Christine Fox, DMBinS MTB Health Programmes Manager and Leadership Development

If you are interested in supporting the delivery of this programme and would like to find out more about how you might be able to do that, DMBinS will be posting project updates and will put out a call to action for aspiring assistants and practitioners in July.