News

Children from a remote Pilbara community have learned some valuable and be-spoke bike skills from our Non-Process Infrasture (NPI) team recently.

Located 142kms South East of Port Hedland, Yandeyarra is home to many who may require assistance with the repair and maintenance of their bicycles due to limited resources.

Consequently, many bikes in the area go unused due to flat tires, ceased chains, and poor brakes.

Adam Norton – who is known as ‘Froggy’ in the community and is our Supervisor Community & Indigenous Affairs, said:

“We recognised that while giving bikes to children would be a generous act, it would be even more impactful if we could teach the children how to maintain and repair the bikes they already have.”

“The NPI boys were keen to get involved and donate the supplies and tools to make it possible.”

After setting up a makeshift workshop and inviting them to help, the children became increasingly curious and excited about fixing their own bikes.

Throughout the afternoon our teams then helped the children diagnose and fix a variety of common issues, including repairing flat tires and other crucial maintenance tasks.

Stephen Conte, NPI Supervisor Infrastructure Maintenance, said our teams were thrilled to see the children fully engaged, soaking up the knowledge and skills, and having fun riding around on their reconditioned wheels.

He added:

“It was good to be able to use our technical skills to help repair the bikes and get the kids back up and riding.”

“It was amazing to see the smiles on these kids’ faces when they got their fixed bikes,”

The Yandeyarra Remote Community School is in the heart of Mugarinya Community and caters for students from Kindergarten to Year 12.

The school is now able to use the bikes for morning exercise activities which will help the children stay energised for the school day.

Stephen added: “It’s great to be able to give back to the community in such a meaningful way.”

The day was a huge success, with over a dozen bikes repaired and now available for the children in the community.

The initiative was warmly welcomed by the school, who praised Roy Hill for their generosity and support.

It’s just another example of our commitment to supporting the communities in which we operate.

Find out more about our community work here.