Cycle Hub on the move to new home

The social enterprise is looking forward to relocating from its current location right on the edge of the Quayside, to a new purpose-built space at Malmo Quay in plans submitted by PfP igloo.

The Cycle Hub, which has been operating from its current site for 10 years, will be relocated as part of newly unveiled plans for Malmo Quay, that, if granted planning approval, will see the under-utilised used space transformed into a new riverside community.  

The plans include a new home for The Cycle Hub at the tip of the Malmo Quay peninsular, in a location founders of the Hub agree offers fantastic views and sunny outdoor space. 

Jill Maddison, one of three co-founders of The Cycle Hub, which is passionate about sustainability and the role active travel can play in saving the planet, said: “The plans will provide a new home for our cafe that we’re really happy with on the bank of the River Tyne, with the iconic views we have enjoyed for the last 10 years.

We are also working with PfP igloo on proposals for the former Steenberg’s Tunnel over the road from the Malmo site, to become a new home for our workshop, bike hire and bike-friendly facilities which are core to our ethos and underpin our relationship with our service users and partners.  

“We are delighted that PfP igloo has made The Cycle Hub an integral part of its new plans, and we’re working closely with them to ensure this remains a real asset for the area and continues to be a place people of all backgrounds, ages and interests can come and enjoy, and indeed somewhere the groups we support can continue to store their bikes, making it the starting point for their activities.” 

The new Cycle Hub building is one of a range of properties included in PfP igloo’s mixed-use scheme for Malmo Quay.  Fabulous facilities for cycling are an integral part of the new proposals, with a workshop, bike parking, facilities for cycle user groups and bike hire all planned in new and refurbished buildings in and around the site.

 New family townhouses are planned for the south and east perimeters of the Quay, which is currently a brownfield site offering little in the way of public amenity. A carefully re-designed apartment block, that will comprise 43 new homes, will stand to the north of the site to protect views from surrounding buildings, whilst still acting as a way-marker for the Quay and the mouth of the Ouseburn.  

Alec Hamlin, development manager at PfP igloo, said: “We’re pleased to be able to include a new home for The Cycle Hub, which is such an important asset to the community on the Quayside already.   

“The plans we have drawn up are about maximising the potential of Malmo Quay and preserving the things that make the area so special.  This is a stunning riverside location, and The Cycle Hub and the Boat Yard are both community assets that we want to protect and conserve. We’re pleased to be working with both to ensure they’re supported by this scheme.” 

The Cycle Hub was set up as a social enterprise by founders Jill and Andrew Straws, and Paul Snedker, and has established a wide-ranging local supply chain to ensure it delivers the greatest possible impact on the area.  Currently the café is supplied by Ringtons, as well as a string of locally based businesses including Cake Stories, Geordie Bakers and Layla’s Kitchen. 

The plans for the area – which will relocate the Cycle Hub to Malmo Quay and keep the Boat Yard in its current position on Spillers Quay - have been drawn up by White Arkitekter, an award-winning Scandinavian practice with significant experience in designing riverside residential developments, including stunning waterside schemes in Oslo and Stockholm. 

They are in keeping with the wider strategy for Ouseburn that will add to the vibrant community that has been established over 35 years of regeneration, complementing PfP-igloo’s award-winning Malings development.