A new study has demonstrated the potentially significant safety benefits that bike helmets provide for cyclists.

Conducted by the University of New South Wales, the research compiled data from more than 40 separate studies and found that helmet use can help to reduce the risk of a serious head injury by nearly 70 per cent.

Moreover, the findings also indicated that the use of helmets can cut the risk of general head injury by 51 per cent, 33 per cent for face injuries and 65 per cent for fatal head trauma.

Data from more than 64,000 injured cyclists was collated for this research, with the results offering no support for arguments against helmet legislation from an injury prevention perspective.

Statistician Jake Olivier, one of the leaders of the study, said: "These results suggest that strategies to increase the uptake of bicycle helmets should be considered along with other injury prevention strategies as part of a comprehensive cycling safety plan."

The findings were presented in Finland at Safety 2016, the world conference on injury prevention and safety promotion.