Years of hard work and determination have paid off for a dedicated team at Halton in Lancashire with the official opening of a skate park, games area and playground for the village.

The project, funded mainly through a £450,000 Community Spaces grant, was launched by local MP David Morris, who unveiled a commemorative plaque before showing off his skills on the state of the art skatepark.

Children from the local playgroup and primary school tried out the playground and games area, while BMX riders and skateboarders were keen to test out the skatepark, which was designed by specialist firm Maverick.

Brian Jefferson, chairman of the local parish council and project manager for the scheme, said: “It’s been a lot of hard work, but we have created something that is not just for this village today, but for everyone in years to come. We have had skateboarders coming from as far away as Brighton to enjoy the fantastic facility we have built here.”

Fundraiser Maureen Richardson added: “Many people were very surprised at the variety of activities we were able to provide over the opening weekend. Many families stayed for the whole day and we had about a dozen tents on site overnight. The skate park competition was simply amazing.
 
“The village is buzzing and all the children at school are very excited. We are really proud of what we have been able to achieve and are pleased that users are recognising our efforts.

“Thank you once again for enabling us to put the heart back into Halton.”

We have posted a short film of the launch day to our YouTube channel – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUrHqdgVzU4

And there’s more information on the Halton Community Centre website – www.haltoncentre.org

A little note from Lesley Jones from the Friends of Calder Holmes Park telling us about the launch of their new skatepark in Hebden Bridge;

“Fair for Youth 2011 in West Yorkshire doubled as the launch event of the newly extended skatepark in Hebden Bridge which was made possible through a grant of almost £50k from the Community Spaces programme.

The Friends of Calder Holmes Park have been working to extend the skatepark for over two and half years. When it finally launched a couple of months ago it was a testament to the patience and ongoing involvement of a group of local skaters and bikers who were finally able to celebrate the completion of the project.

A skate and BMX jam was held which attracted over 133 entrants and the day was a celebration of the achievements of the young people of Hebden Bridge and the surrounding area. The event, including the skate jam was planned and organised with significant input from the local youngsters and a popular element were the performances over the day of local bands and DJs. 

The Friends group hope that local young people of the area will remain involved by helping to raise the funds necessary to stage a similar jam event again next year.”

The pictures from the event are fantastic – we think this is going to be a well-used local resource and will hopefully give talented local skaters and bikers a space to practice and perform their skills!

Lovely news story on our website today about teenage boy George Lowe – who has led his local community to form a group and worked to secure a Community Spaces grant of just under £50k for a shiny new skate park. What an inspiring teenager!

Read the full story here:  http://www.community-spaces.org.uk/module/news/display/newsdisplay.aspx?news=78

The Community Skate Park Project in Taunton, Somerset are getting their plans together after securing a grant of just under £50k from Community Spaces.

The project, which is costing around £200k in total, is currently being designed and planned by the group and will hopefully be opened in May 2010.

Further information about the project, including the exciting skatepark plans in 3D, can be found on their dedicated website: http://www.apeskates.co.uk/skatepark/taunton or by visiting the groups Facebook page.

The plans are looking really good! We look forward to receiving more updates from the group and wish them the very best with the delivery of their project.