Cycle firm boss Matt Jones has started a bike amnesty so he can refurbish them and hand them on to key NHS workers.

The 39-year-old has already given away 15 of the 100 or so bicycles donated to him since the start of the lockdown .

He said: “I came up with the idea of a bike amnesty, basically people offered to donate bikes to me and I’m servicing them and making them roadworthy.

“Then I’m passing them on to NHS workers.

“I have my daughter from Monday to Thursday each week so I only get the weekends to fix up the bikes. It’s quite a tall order.”

“We’re getting there slowly,” he said.

“I don’t think this is something that should be done, but it’s a nice thing to do.

“I was at home and while not doing anything I just thought it would be a nice thing to pass on to the people who are putting their lives at risk every day.”

Matt, a cycling enthusiast, started Run and Repair in 2018 after he decided he wanted a career change from the construction industry. He now has a shop in Peatmoor.

NHS staff who have received the revamped bikes are enjoying the new mode of transport.

He said: “There’s been a really positive reception, I’ve had lots of shares on Facebook and got lots of nice comments,

“The nurses have been really happy with the bikes as well which is obviously a bonus.”

One of the people given a bike from Matt was Donna Drury who works on Meldon Ward at the Great Western Hospital.

She has been using it to commute from Grange Park.

She said: “He was just the kindest, sweetest guy. He didn’t want anything for it, he was just doing it out of the kindness of his own heart.

“It was so touching, he gave me a helmet as well.”

“I messaged him and asked if he had a spare bike because I don’t drive,” she explained.

“I’ve been doing a 40 minute journey on the bus each time and with the current situation I felt like I was just putting myself more at risk.

“He messaged me straight away, got my height and said he’d get me one as soon as possible and he did within a few days.”

The journey still takes Donna 40 minutes, but she feels a lot safer now that she doesn’t have to take the bus, thanks to the bike.

Another recipient was Gina Tilley from Walcot who works at the intensive mental health unit in Devizes.

She told the Adver: “Matt put an ad on Facebook, on his page, asking for donations of people’s old bikes

“So I just sent him a message saying that I would be interested in one if he could get one.

“I offered a donation but he wasn’t having any of it.”

And when Matt finally delivered her bike, Gina was in floods of tears.

“When he delivered it I cried. He’s amazing and so thoughtful.

“I couldn’t believe people had been so generous.

“Not just him, but the people of Swindon who have donated it.”

NHS workers in need of a bike - either for commuting or for exercise and staying healthy - can contact Matt at his Run and Repair Facebook page or by calling him on 07736834867