New Technology Grant Brings Freedom of Cycling to Children and Adults with Disabilities

The Harcourts Foundation has awarded a $2,145 grant to Freedom Solutions Australia to fund a new laptop that will support inclusive bike trials at Coburg North.

This essential piece of technology will enable an allied health professional to deliver customised bike assessments for around 100 children and adults with disabilities each year—many experiencing the joy of cycling for the first time.

Since 1975, Freedom Solutions has been designing and building bespoke adaptive equipment for people with disabilities across Victoria and NSW.

Their skilled volunteers have created more than 54,000 customised solutions, filling critical gaps where commercial options simply don't exist. The new laptop will strengthen their Freedom Wheels program by supporting on-site assessments, customised bike prescriptions, and the preparation of reports required for NDIS and other funding applications.

Importantly, the grant will allow trials to be offered free of charge to families facing financial hardship, ensuring equal access to the physical, social, and emotional benefits of cycling. Over the four-month project period, the laptop will directly support 35 people, with benefits rippling outward to an estimated 500 family members and community connections annually.

"We're proud to support Freedom Solutions in their mission to create greater independence and inclusion for people with disabilities," said Pauline Smith, Head of the Harcourts Foundation.

"Sometimes the simplest investment—like a laptop—can unlock transformative experiences. This grant helps ensure that more children and adults can access the freedom and confidence that comes from riding a bike."

A representative from Freedom Solutions Australia expressed heartfelt gratitude for the partnership: "We thank Harcourts Foundation for this generous support.

This grant strengthens our capacity to introduce children and adults with disability to the joy and freedom of riding a bike—some for the first time in their lives. The opportunity to try inclusive cycling provides much more than recreation. It helps people build confidence, physical strength, and social connections."

They continued: "Each customised bike creates ripple effects extending to siblings, parents, and friends. This investment strengthens a service that has transformed lives since 1975, and it will ensure we can continue delivering meaningful impact into the future."

"This is about more than mobility," the Freedom Solutions representative concluded. "It's about giving people the chance to experience true freedom—the wind in their hair, the ground beneath their wheels, and the knowledge that anything is possible."