Born in Wales. Established in London · 2012
4,000+ people trained. One shared belief.
It started with a simple idea: anyone can learn to make something extraordinary.
From those early experiments with bamboo and bicycle frames, Bamboo Bicycle Club took shape in a small Hackney Wick workshop in 2012. What started as a hands-on approach to engineering and sustainable materials has grown into an international community of makers.
Today, our work spans continents — from public workshops across Europe to projects in Africa, and programmes in schools, community hubs and prisons. Through bamboo bicycle building, we share practical engineering skills, champion sustainable materials and create opportunities for people to learn, connect and build brighter futures.
The bicycle is just the beginning.
Photo: James Marr teaching at the workshop bench.
We believe everyone can make something extraordinary. Through bamboo bicycle building, we bring engineering to life — developing practical skills, confidence and new opportunities. From public workshops and schools to prisons, we use the simple act of making to help people discover what they're capable of.
There's nothing quite like riding a bike you've built yourself. Join one of our hands-on workshops in London, Amersfoort or Toulouse, or build at home with one of our kits. We'll give you the materials, guidance and skills to create something truly your own.
Browse the kitsBring engineering to life through hands-on making. Since 2014, we've worked with schools and communities to make design, engineering and sustainable materials accessible to everyone. From classroom projects to community workshops, our programmes build practical skills, confidence and creativity — delivered by our team or your own staff.
Explore our programmesBuilding a bicycle can be the start of something bigger. Our hands-on programmes help people in custody develop practical skills, confidence and connections beyond prison. From our two-week Build to Bond course, where participants make a balance bike for a child in their family, to our six-week course in Workshop Skills and Sustainable Manufacturing, every build creates something meaningful and opens the door to what's next.
Explore prison programmesRoutes into resettlement and employment are in development.
Bamboo Mobility Project CIC · 16257348 — programmes, education and community delivery. Bamboo Bicycle Club London Ltd · 10809302 — the workshop, kits and designs.
Before there was a workshop, there was an experiment.
In Brecon, Wales, engineers James Marr and Ian McMillan began exploring how bamboo — a fast-growing, natural material — could be transformed into a strong, functional bicycle frame.
Through experimentation, problem-solving and plenty of hands-on making, they refined a method that didn't just produce a bicycle. It could teach someone else how to build one too.
In 2012, they took that idea to Hackney Wick, London, and founded Bamboo Bicycle Club — a workshop built around sharing knowledge, putting tools in people's hands and making engineering accessible to everyone.
More than a decade later, James is still building, experimenting and teaching, driven by the same belief that started it all.
Read James's full profile“I believe building things is powerful, and can help people progress in their lives.”
James Marr · Inside Time, 17 November 2025.
From our London workshop to our partners in the Netherlands and France, Bamboo Bicycle Club is powered by a small, passionate team of makers, engineers and people who believe in the power of learning by doing.
James continues to teach and develop our bamboo bicycle designs, supported by a team delivering workshops, education and community programmes, and partners sharing our methods across Europe.
Director of Operations & Impact Lead
Driven by a passion for social impact, Chris turns ideas into action — bringing together people, partnerships and innovative approaches to create meaningful change. He oversees operations, programme development and delivery, connecting practical skills with real opportunities and ensuring our work makes a lasting difference.
Meet Chris
Workshop Manager, London
At the heart of our London workshop, Liam brings craftsmanship, practical know-how and an eye for detail to every build. From preparing materials and refining our processes to supporting makers and bringing new ideas to life, he keeps the workshop running smoothly and ensures every build is something to be proud of.
Meet Liam
Business Strategy & Corporate Partnerships Adviser
An experienced business leader, Vicky brings commercial insight, strategic thinking and a strong understanding of corporate relationships to Bamboo Bicycle Club. She helps shape our business strategy, strengthen our proposition and build partnerships with employers and businesses — connecting our programmes with new opportunities for growth, collaboration and lasting impact.
Meet Vicky
Workshop Partner · Amersfoort, Netherlands
Tim built his first bamboo bicycle frame with us in London in 2016. Inspired by the experience, he went on to bring the same hands-on approach to Amersfoort, where he now helps others discover the joy of building their own bicycles.
Meet Tim
Workshop Partner · Toulouse, France
An engineer with a passion for bamboo bicycle building, Guillaume brings technical expertise and hands-on creativity to our French workshop in Pinsaguel, near Toulouse, helping more people turn natural materials into bicycles of their own.
Meet GuillaumePartner workshops are independently run by their operators, using our method and kit.
Bamboo Mobility Project CIC (16257348) runs our programmes, education and community work. Its directors are James Marr (since 2025), Chris Barrett (since 2025) and Alexandra Maitland Makgill Crichton (since 2026).
Photos: Chris Barrett at thinkFOUND (Waltham Forest Echo, 2021). Liam Mertens in his studio (his website). Vicky Mitchell (TERRAGRN). Tim van Woudenberg at the workbench (our Instagram). Guillaume Denneulin at his workshop (Concours de Machines).
James Marr and Ian McMillan open in Hackney Wick: what the Guardian called the UK's first bamboo bike workshop.
Home-build kits, RideLondon and a BBC bicycle pictured in UN-REDD's REDD+ Sourcebook.
An aero frame joins Cycle Revolution. The live build follows the next year.
With Oxford Brookes, a bamboo frame with 3D-printed lugs is built live at the Design Museum. The GREAT Britain showcase and Eden-grown bamboo follow.
A skills-transfer build in Kenya, with Promoting Africa e.V. In 2017: workshops in Novigrad and at Eden, and the Ltd's incorporation.
Selected as one of Kevin McCloud's Green Heroes at Grand Designs Live.
Kate Rawles completes her expedition on 16 February, after thirteen months on the road.
The Munich workshop hosts Abel Hailegiorgis to prototype a folding bamboo wheelchair. He goes on to found Bamboo Labs.
GCN features the club in Are Bamboo Bikes Actually Any Good?
Bespoked at Lee Valley VeloPark. Cycling UK names the club among five things to see.
Prison-course development, Match: Design & Sport in Paris, and a skills partnership with Urumuri in Rwanda.
The CIC is incorporated. The workshop opens at HMP Lowdham Grange and the training course gains OCN approval. The year also brings FT coverage, Investec Beyond Business, Pedal Forward and Lord Timpson's endorsement.
Four prison sites, at different delivery stages. A Lowdham-built balance bike is displayed at the National Justice Museum.
Sources: BBC history records; Claims Register and overview deck v45. Checked 17 October 2026.
Build a frame and learn how it goes together. Taro's account follows ten years with his own bike.
Bamboo regrows from the same root. We use it to teach practical design and engineering.
We want more people to have the chance to make. Jon built a frame from a home kit with the use of one hand.
84.3 MPa bamboo tubing tested at Swansea University to BS ISO 22157:2019.
This is a material test, not certification of a finished bicycle. Source: Swansea testing, published 2023; approved wording, 28 September 2026.
Read Taro's account of his hand-built bamboo bike.
Read Taro's story
Kate Rawles built Woody on a Bamboo Bicycle Club course, using Eden Project bamboo.
Read Kate's story
Jon built his own frame with the use of one hand.
Read Jon's storyBuilt one yourself? Tell us about it: info@bamboobicycleclub.org
Photos: Taro, Kate and Jon's own published stories.
Four films from our workshops and prison work. Choose a film to play.
From bamboo tubes to a finished frame.
A film from HMP Lowdham Grange.
Workshop life and makers' bicycles.
Cutting, shaping and binding a frame.
Photos: stills from the films.
4,000+ people trained since 2012.
3,500+ bikes built.
Source: programme and customer records; lifetime figures approved in overview deck v45, 16 October 2026.
90%+ completion across the prison programme.
Source: BBC programme records; approved in overview deck v45, 16 October 2026.
26% measured confidence uplift.
Source: BBC pre/post questionnaire; Claims Register wording checked 17 October 2026. BBC's own evaluation.
22 schools, colleges and universities.
Source: institution records verified 27 August 2026; the named list is on our Education page.
Featured in more than 60 publications, including the Financial Times, The Guardian and BBC News.
Source: BBC Press Archive; approved 3 October 2026.
See all coverage
Design Museum · Musée du Luxembourg, Paris · National Justice Museum · Investec Beyond Business 2025.
Press enquiries, bios and photographs: info@bamboobicycleclub.org
45 countries with our customers.
Source: distinct countries in customer records; approved 7 July 2026 and retained in overview deck v45, 16 October 2026.
Two partner workshops abroad: Amersfoort and Toulouse.
Source: verified workshop record, 6 September 2026.
Source: overview deck v45, page 11; owner decision, 16 October 2026.
Build your own frame. Bring practical making to your school or college. Explore a prison programme, or talk to us about supporting the work.
Interested in teaching or volunteering? Tell us what you'd bring: info@bamboobicycleclub.org
Photo: a loaded bamboo touring bike on a mountain track; not a programme participant.