TEENAGERS rebuilt a rusting moped then rode it around a Wroughton race track.

The intensive Wheels Workshop course was funded out of a £5,000 Big Lottery Fund grant.

It saw the two boys, aged 14 and 15, spend a couple of days in the workshop with mechanic Rob Fox. They replaced ball-bearings and rusting bodywork, before riding it around the sopping-wet Swindon Kart Arena on the former Wroughton airfield.

“It was quite a complex job,” said mechanic Rob. “Having a shorter session and fewer kids meant the kids could get a lot more out of it.

“You can’t get all that many kids around a motorbike and work safely. Two proved to be the perfect ratio for concentration and safety."

Rob, a champion at agility sport Moto Gymkhana, is used to sharing his mechanic skills with teens for whom school is a challenge. His organisation, Wheels Workshop, has taught sessions at the Oakfield Project, where pupils are often sent if they have been excluded from mainstream schools.

While the holiday course pair had not been excluded, Rob said they needed a little more motivation to keep their eyes on the ball.

Fixing a moped focuses the teens' minds: "Most kids are capable of quite high levels of concentration on something they're interested in and that's presented as a real-life challenge."

Rob will run two more holiday courses before Christmas. To register your interest, visit: www.wheelsworkshop.org.