Closed Paignton skatepark is 'high risk'

But skaters still getting in

A popular Paignton skate park was closed immediately after a safety inspection identified ‘high risks’ to skaters using it.

There was no time to consult users of the area in Victoria Park before shutting it down last December,

Now a community campaign has begun, calling for the return of skate park.

The Victoria Park facility closed amid safety concerns and has been fenced off ever since. The inspection found corroded metal ramps and frames.

However, skaters have been getting in through fences to use the space.

As a result, in June bulldozers came in to remove the ramps and rails.

A well-attended meeting of the Paignton Town Community Partnership heard calls for the facilities to be replaced.

An alternative skate park at Parkfield, just off Paignton seafront, is not suitable for young children to use.

The council says it will work with groups including the community partnership, Torbay Communities and the People’s Parkfield Project to come up with a solution.

Cllr Yannis Nicolaou (Lib Dem, Ellacombe) told a full council meeting that the announcement of the skate park’s closure had come on National Go Skateboarding Day and had been ‘devastating news’ to many young people.

He asked what consultation had been carried out before that decision was made.

Cabinet member Cllr Adam Billings (Con, Churston with Galmpton) told him: “Consultation was not possible, as the situation arose following a Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents inspection that directed the need to close parts of the facility with immediate effect. The largest and most useable elements of the large park were condemned as high risk.”

Cllr Nicolau pointed out that the Victoria Park area was created to reduce the impact of anti-social behaviour in the town centre.

Cllr Billings said: “Council officers are working with police partners to track and understand if there is an increase in anti-social behaviour complaints related to the closure of the park.”