Council offers free scooters to more than 1,000 school pupils

A Scottish council is offering free scooters and helmets to more than 1,000 primary three pupils in its region.

The move - part of a Scottish Borders Council (SBC) campaign to encourage people to swap short car journeys for active travel options - follows a successful launch in Hawick last summer.

Funding has now been secured to make it possible to roll out the offer across the entire local authority area.

SBC's executive member for environment, sustainability and transport Jenny Linehan said the positive response in Hawick showed why it was important to make active travel "fun, accessible and practical for families".

The additional funding has come from Transport Scotland for the active travel campaign - which has been named RIDONKULOUS.

Linehan said they had been keen to extend it across the region after the positive response in Hawick.

"Expanding the initiative across the Scottish Borders is a great opportunity to build on that momentum, helping more children travel actively, safely and with confidence," she said.

Primary three pupils will receive a comic-style flyer explaining the initiative, alongside a leaflet for parents and carers setting out how the equipment has been funded and how families can opt out if they wish.

The campaign promotes healthier, more sustainable ways to travel and encourages people to swap short car journeys for active travel options such as walking, wheeling, scooting, cycling and horse-riding where possible.

The Scottish Borders has more than 50 primary schools spread across the region with 1,027 children in their P3 classes.