Last night, Tuesday the 1st of November 2022, at the second public consultation session, a host of local children and their families turned out in support of the heavily contested Oakham Skatepark Project.

While the first of these meetings, held on Saturday the 15th of October, saw the majority of attendees in opposition of the skatepark proposal at Centenary Fields, the second of these meetings saw much more debate, with many more attendees appearing to be in favour of the skatepark and its proposed location.

This was certainly the case for the youth in attendance, many of who came clutching skateboards and asking for a space to be allowed to practice what they feel they can currently only experience on YouTube and through video games.

The opposition voiced their opinion that, while they were not against providing a space for these children, they did not see Centenary Fields as a fit location.

Councillor Zoë Nealson, who chaired the meeting, shared a list of reasons for and against Centenary Fields as an appropriate location for the skatepark that had been highlighted at the previous meeting.

The reasons against included but were not limited to:

• loss of opportunity to visit a place of reflection/memorial
• a pool would be preferable to a skatepark
• residents may feel vulnerable
• the near-by care village is at risk of access
• increased litter
• antisocial behaviour
• noise concerns from skatepark equipment and accessories such as speakers
• lighting concerns
• Centenary Field should be "an adult only space"
• how it will be maintained? 

The reasons to support included but were not limited to:

• deemed a perfect location by those involved in building other skateparks
• only 2% of the field would be used
• no existing infrastructure would be lost
• Skateparks statistically decrease antisocial behaviour
• a public space such as Centenary Fields is not "an adult only space"
• near a school so accessible for the children who often already frequent the area
• relatively central to Oakham
• Centenary Fields is not only a memorial but an open public space
• the park would be at least the required 30 metres from nearest residence,
• the park would be seen as safe spaces by users
• skateparks are a good social and mental health facility
• the park should be overlooked for safety

A local child, Jack, added: "You can even learn to do tricks on your skateboard. That is cool."

One resident, who attended in opposition of the build, added to the list of concerns, noting health and safety as an issue. He proposed that the pond was a risk to children and recommended Royce Recreation Ground as an alternative.

It appears that the Centenary Field location would require the skatepark to take up a much smaller percentage of the green space available than it would located at Royce's, as highlighted by Jon Dixon on this map.

A supporter of the Centenary Fields location highlighted the River Gwash passing through Royce Recreation Ground, and questioned if that made Royce an equally inappropriate location. The opposition suggested that this may be the case, but that they were not opposed to the skatepark in principle.

Many in opposition suggested building the skatepark further out of town, to which those in support of the Centenary Fields location responded that it did not fix the issue of children having safe and independent access to a park in the heart of Oakham.

A group scout leader voiced her frustration at "the assumption that young people are misbehaving and causing anti-social behaviour. If we embraced the problem, then perhaps this would be alleviated. There's no youth club, no choices… we need to work together as a community to give these kids a chance."

She offered the well-established Greetham Skatepark as a positive example of a well-run skatepark, with lights that are paid for with £1 tokens, ultimately raising money to reduce the burden from tax payers who don't want it, and preventing light pollution when the skatepark is not being used.

Lauren, the Oakham Town PCSO, added that "from a police point of view, we support anything that Oakham Town Council are going to put into place for the youth of Oakham. There is a youth club that is widely attended, and the amount of respect from the young people is phenomenal. They are so respectful and come up to myself and my vehicle to say hello. If people are worried that the police can't patrol this area, this is going to be a positive location and positive thing, as we know the kids that will congregate and we can manage that."

While opposition to the park and the Centenary Fields location remained, bursts of applause from those in support of the skatepark suggested that the attendees of this meeting were much more in favour than those in attendance on the 15th of October 2022.

Upon leaving the meeting, a local lady, Karen, commented: "It was interesting to see the children sat patiently waiting with hands raised to make their points, while there were adults in the room shouting each other down. We could learn a lot from the young generation. Why can't we give them a chance to, perhaps, be the next Sky Brown?"

Hear from Jon Dixon, the Oakham Skatepark Project leader, here.

Alternatively, read more from an opposition party member, Adrian Foy, here.

Share your views by emailing [email protected].