The weather was on our side and in less than eight days the project to enhance Ventnor Skatepark is now complete.
The Neverland Skateparks team arrived on the Island and started work on Saturday 1st June with the aim of creating a number of DIY obstacles at the skate site on Ventnor Esplanade.
With the help of several volunteers throughout the week they were able to get more done than expected and in record time.
Ventnor Skatepark Charity
The charity who hold the lease to the park site and have responsibility for it, had been in limbo for sometime, first due to Covid Lockdowns and then over the past 18 months due to the emergency revetment works.
John Cattle from Wight Trash/John Cattle’s Skate Club and who is also a trustee said,
“We really weren’t sure what was going to happen to the site. It is something I have been involved with for the last 20 years so the thought of not being able to continue to skate there would be really disappointing.
“But with thanks to the Isle of Wight council and environment agency they have remained supportive and as soon as they gave us the go ahead we got to work. We headed a successful DIY project in Ryde last year, so getting the team back for a Ventnor build was something we knew could work”.
Our thanks to Angie Davies for sharing her photos shot at the weekend.
Youth involvement
Zoe Thompson, Ventnor Skatepark Charity Trustee explains,
“The benefit of taking a DIY approach to skate spaces is that it is a quicker, cheaper way to breathe life into the parks. As with any kind of regeneration of an area, consulting is one thing, but it is community engagement that I feel strongly about, and that we saw worked really well in the Ryde Skate Park Project.
“Encouraging park users to be directly involved in the making of the obstacles, working alongside experienced people so they can see how it’s done and learn new skills.
“In Ventnor we had a number of local teenagers volunteer their time, the team were really impressed with their dedication and the skills they showed”
Frankland: Has given us a real sense of purpose and community
16-year-old Luca Frankland, said,
“We have been using the skatepark everyday even when it was just a single ramp, that’s because we like to skate, but also because there was no where else to really go.
“Being able to help build a skatepark we are going to skate everyday, and meet awesome people whilst building it has been so great.
“I think a lot of us really enjoyed helping out because it gave us a real sense of purpose and community.”
The future
The Ventnor Skatepark Group remain the leaseholders for the site and will now be working on the long term future of the skatepark.
There will be further opportunities later in the year for the local community to get involved with the committee.
Free skateboard lessons
Starting next month John Cattle’s Skate Club will be holding a series of free skateboard lessons at the park for those new to skating or who want to develop their confidence in using the new obstacles.
Details will be provided through JCSC Instagram/Facebook and Ventnor Skatepark Instagram/Facebook.
News shared by Zoe on behalf of Ventnor Skatepark Charity. Ed
