In Measham, local group DE12 SK8 worked for five years to build a skate park and reduce anti-social behaviour in their community.
We asked the group’s founder, Phil Woodhall, what inspired him to build a skate park in his own back yard, what he would say to someone else considering taking on a project and what’s next for DE12 SK8.
We started by asking Phil why he chose to set up DE12 SK8?
I have been a skateboarder for over 40 years and fully understand the benefits and rewards that it brings in terms of social and physical benefits.
When I had my own children it was my son who took a strong interest in skateboarding from an early age and as a result many of his friends likewise. I would regularly drive this small group around the country to visit good quality skate parks.
5 years ago I attended a meeting chaired by the parish council…During the meeting one of the agenda items was the discussion of a potential skatepark for the village which I found had been highlighted on the parish plans 10 years earlier but nothing solid had taken place.
In fact, a councillor voiced his opinion why Measham should not have a skatepark citing a recent failure of another local park.
I intervened at the meeting giving the reasons why that park had failed and it was not a true indication of the benefits the sport brings. The park in question was designed by people with no knowledge of the requirements, poorly built by external contractors who had never build a skatepark and built in completely the wrong location, all resulting in the bad press.
In February 2010 I then formed a group to build our own.
Between February and 2010 and the skate park’s opening in September 2015, Phil, 10 local volunteers and around 30 young people worked tirelessly to gain permission from the local community to set up the skate park, raise funds and get the plans moving.
Over the years and [we] attended many presentations, functions, events and meetings to promote the idea of the park. When we finally placed the order it was a momentous day.
Momentous because we found that before we could place the order there were still many contracts and legalities that needed sorting and with documents to be posted to a fro, signed and returned then finally we would be awaiting a letter of approval to proceed.
…[The supplier] told us that there were 5 other groups in the country all at the same position as ourselves and that scheduling of works would be on a first come first served basis.
With each build being 16 weeks we potentially could be another year away from cutting the sod on our building!
[So], that day we held emergency meetings with the group and the council and after three trips to the key funder… and with the required signatories in the car we managed to process everything the same day and beat all the other groups to be the first in line for a build to start just a few weeks later!
The skate park has now been in use for several months, and it’s having a fantastic impact on the local community.
Since the skatepark opened in September 2015 Measham has been put on the map for very positive reasons nationally.
A few months after it opened a meeting took place between the parish council, planning department, Police and district council and all agreed that since it opened there have been almost no reported incidents of anti-social behaviour in the village.
It was agreed by all that this has never happened before and is a true testament to the success of the park.
To see young and old alongside each other using the park together promotes respect at every level and the young people are now learning from positive examples. This has to be a good thing and I feel very proud to be a part of it.
The young people who were part of building the park have found that their experiences are also helping them on the way to securing employment.
Some of the young people involved in the group joined when they were aged between 12 – 15. As they got older they began looking for employment or university places [and] they [have] all proudly included their involvement with the group on their CVs.
This helped them during their interview process as it helped to differentiate them from other young people applying for the same position. They now had a story to tell which involved the community and wider picture.
Over the five years they all developed their presentation skills and promoted a positive message which helped them with confidence through experience.
DE12 SK8’s accomplishments to date are outstanding, but the group isn’t resting on its laurels.
Now that the park is up and running we hold regular meetings with the group members to manage the grounds and surroundings. The park was designed and planned as a self-policing operation through championing respect with its users so they recognise and promote the positive etiquette of the park.
Following the successful opening of the skatepark in September 2015 the group have recognised a requirement for young people to get some coaching before they commit to buying their own equipment. There are many young people for example who currently ride scooters who wish to try skateboarding.
As a result the group have fundraised £1,200 and purchased 12 sets of skateboards, helmets, knee and elbow pads, wrist guards to begin running an informal skate school teaching people how to ride skateboards in a safe environment by securing sections of the park starting with the entrance path before moving onto more challenging areas within the park.
This will be run and managed by the group and the ambassadors and publicised through the groups’ Facebook page.
We also aim to have an annual birthday jam to replicate on a smaller scale the opening event.
We were recently nominated for a community award at the North West Leicestershire Sports alliance awards 2015 and were highlighted in the keynote speech as a success in sport for NWL during 2015. This was a very proud moment for the group.
In closing, we asked Phil what he would to someone who wanted to take on a project in their community.
If I had to give advice to other groups a project in their community it would be to get a branding and be recognised as being serious about your project. At every opportunity do a press release on your progress. This all helps to prove your need to potential funders.
The other is to be passionate about your project. No one will ever be more passionate than you. If you are not excited, don’t expect others to be.
Doing something for your community is hard work but well worth it.
It was JF Kennedy who once said, “We are happiest when we are contributing most”. This is accurate when doing community work.
You can find out more about DE12 SK8 on their Facebook page.