On your bike: De-Graft joins a bike bus for cycle to school week

If you cycle to school each day, you're one of a very small group who do!

Research from the government's Department for Transport suggests only 3% of kids aged between 5 and 16 in England cycle to school each day.

Cycling Scotland found that 5.3% of kids bike to school in Scotland, but just 1% of Northern Irish primary school pupils use their bike to get to school according to the Department for Infrastructure.

Even though the number of kids cycling to school is low, the benefits can be huge.

This Cycle to School week, De-Graft wanted to find out more from the kids who choose to bike.

De-Graft met up with a group of kids and their parents, who use a particular form of pedal power to get to school each morning - a bike bus!

That's where a group of people cycle together on a set route, stopping at planned points.

One of the children involved said they thought it was a great idea because seeing "one big bike bus can inspire a child to do the same thing".

Another said: "The best thing about the bike bus is that everyone gets to get out and have some fresh air and be together."

How to stay safe while riding a bike

One tip to stay safe while riding a bike is to wear a properly fitted helmet, but there are other things you can do to also stay safe on two wheels.

If you are comfortable cycling on roads, then bike safety expert Emily Cherry says it's important to know what's going on around you, making sure you "look ahead, look around behind you" when on the roads.

She also said it is important to be in a good position while riding a bike on the road, "don't stay in the gutter, go out in the centre of the lane so traffic can come around you safely".

Emily says that communication is key, you should use arm signals to tell traffic what you are doing but you should also know who has priority at junctions "so which way the traffic's coming and who has to take their turn first".