New generation take on the challenge of the Boyley Forever Skate Park

Hastings Mayor, Councillor James Bacon, and the Cabinet Lead for Culture and Health, Councillor Andy Batsford, met with the young skaters and riders who use the Boyley Forever Skate Park, Falaise Road. This meeting aimed to see how the council could assist with the challenge of modelling and building the second phase of the skate park.

Inspired by the amazing work done by the young people and councillors in Sidley, which saw the old Sidley site transformed and extended the BMX and skateboarding offer, now hundreds of young people every week are there keeping fit in formal and informal sessions at a once neglected site.

Mayor of Hastings, Cllr James Bacon, said: "The users of Boyley Skate Park reached out to the Mayor's office via the amazing Xtrax Young people's centre, asking to meet and talk about their vison for the skate park and how to move their ideas forward. I was delighted to go along and bring Cllr Andy Batsford with me to listen and come up with a plan to move things forward."

Cllr Andy Batsford, lead for Health and Culture at Hastings Borough Council, added: "Thanks to the Boyley Trust, who have worked hard for more than 20 years to ensure this park has become a space that can be enjoyed by lots of the town's residents. Their future vision for this skate park is on its way to becoming a reality, however, funding is still needed to make sure the next stages of their plans can happen.

"This skate park is such an important, safe, and free place for hundreds of young people of all ages in Hastings. It's been a real ambition of not only the council officers and councillors to extend and complete the site but for the generations of incredible skilled riders, skaters and scooter boys and girls who have honed their talents on this site.

"This feels like the right time to move things forward, working with Xtrax, the users of the skate park, HBC officers, commercial companies, councillors and young people who can share their ideas to help make this happen, and produce a skate park that is designed and the developed by the young people who use and know the sport and site."

If you would like to be involved in this next exciting phase, then contact Matt Davey from Xtrax at email: matt.davey@xtrax.org

ENDS
Video filmed by the young people of Boyley Skatepark. (Takes you to YouTube)