A Skate Ramp for Chase Park

Aim

Shred the North CIC & Birkheads Wild CIC are fundraising to build a large, all-ability skate ramp in Chase Park, Whickham for our community.

Help us to build an all-ability skate ramp for Chase Park in Whickham for the benefit of our local community.

SUMMARY:

• Chase Park in Whickham needs a skate ramp. The existing skating area is too small and lacks a ramp for all skate / wheeled sports.   It is also not a very progressive park as the features are too advanced for beginners and it also lacks variety. There is nowhere else nearby in Gateshead with an outdoors ramp similar to the one we have planned and it would expand the current limited area for skating in the park.
• Proposal: Shred the North and Birkheads Wild are fundraising to build and install a large new skate ramp (36 foot x 15 foot)  with an all weather covering  as an extension to the existing facilities. The proposed design ensures the ramp is accessible, challenging, and provides a space for scooters quads and bladers! This will be a unique spot with nothing else like it nearby. But we aren't just building a ramp - we are building a community around it!
• Social objective: Investing in Chase Park skating facilities will enable it to become a new hub for outdoor skating in Gateshead at the centre of a beautiful green space. There are many benefits for physical and mental health and for connecting people and giving them a community to belong to, and healthy outdoor activities to participate in. 
• What will we do with the money: We have quotes and plans for the design and build of the ramp, and we also want to provide a roof/covering so that the ramp will stay leaf free and dry in all weathers. The ramp will be a varied and progressive design suitable for all abilities. Any remaining funding will be used for landscaping in the park to join up the 2 existing skate areas with paths and add a seating area. We will undertake design work and planning in partnership with Gateshead Council and the Friends of Chase Park at every stage.
• Partnership: We have permission & support from Gateshead Council to undertake this project and are also working with the Friends of Chase Park in ensure all park users are consulted and involved along the way. 

(image shows Birkheads Wild Young Explorers after a skateboard Coaching session from Shred the North in Chase Park - when we learnt of our successful National Lottery Community Fund bid to support this project, Aug 2021)

WELCOME!

You've reached the Crowd Funder campaign to build a new Skate Ramp for Chase Park in Whickham.

Background 

We are; 

• Shred the North CIC - a social enterprise which promotes, facilitates and encourages skateboarding activities in the north east;
• Birkheads Wild CIC - a social enterprise aimed at helping local young people discover, explore and enjoy the outdoors in Gateshead, mainly through creating a place for free range humans on our 2 acre rural, off-grid campsite (3 miles from Chase Park).

Since the start of 2021  the two social enterprises have been working together on a project to help provide opportunities for young people in Gateshead to learn to skateboard, get active, and get outside more.

Young People are at the heart of this project

One of the unique aspects of this project is that it is led and driven by young people who want to skate AND help their local community. Birkheads Wild Young Explorers is an Outdoors Youth Club which undertakes bushcraft, forests school and other outdoors activities but also gets its members involved in the local community - volunteering and fundraising on causes and issues the young people care about. Birkheads Wild Young Leaders (aged 12-15) have been involved in  running  this project from the start - a skate ramp was their idea! and they've also helped with fundraising, made videos and created some fantastic artwork to support the project. 

With Shred the North, Birkheads Wild has helped build a local community of new skaters, and young people who are interested and passionate about skateboarding who are building their skills, getting more active and healthy and getting involved in this exciting project in their community.

Skate Park Project

We are expanding the existing skate facilities next to the tennis court to create a bigger skate park that will be accessible to Skateboards, Scooters & Roller-skaters/Quads. Currently the skate park has some small ramps and rails but no opportunity to progress and little which is suitable for beginners. There is also no covered pace which means the park is not useable in wet weather. The new ramp project will include landscaping to join up the two skating spaces with paths to create connected skate spaces in chase park . We have permission from Gateshead council to expand the park and will work with them to make this project happen in Spring/Summer 2022.  

(image shows two of Birkheads Wild Young Leaders hanging out in Chase Park at one of our Learn to Skate sessions with Shred the North in Oct 2021 funded by NE Youth)

Young people have been profoundly affected by COVID 19 and its restrictions and now need support to be outside in a safe environment so they can get active and look after their physical and mental health while being connected to a community.

We know that skateboarding is massively on the increase since Sky Brown's success in the Olympics...But there aren't enough good outdoor places to learn skate nearby!

Girls Skate

We are particularly interested in showcasing the talents of young women and girls and encouraging more girls to try skateboarding, providing a safe space for them to learn and progress. We will have dedicated Girls Skate sessions once the ramp is in place and sessions focused on attracting other under represented groups to skateboarding. If you are a girl who skates or who wants to learn to skate we want to hear from you.

We are also looking at the best ways to encourage other groups traditionally under represented in the skateboarding community in the North East. 

 We want to finish the great fundraising we've started this year with a campaign to raise the final £15,000 needed to be able to build, fabricate and install the multi-ability (36 foot x 15 foot) ramp with an all weather covering in Chase Park, Whickham.

(artwork created by George Turrell, aged 15, Young Leader for Birkheads Wild)

The future

If our fundraising is successful, we will have the ramp installed and built in the park in Spring 2022. Thanks to the National Lottery Community Fund we will be able to offer  free starter skate lessons to encourage new members to join this growing community. In a post-COVID world where the young have been profoundly effected both mentally and physically, this safe out doors sport is so important to fund.  

Partners

We're working closely with Gateshead Council on this project  . Our initial Phase 1 work to get more young people interested in skateboarding locally and to consult on the design and needs for the ramp was supported by NE Youth, and we have also been successful in receiving a £9,000 grant from the National Lottery Community Fund to contribute towards the ramp costs and to pay for lessons and coaching in Chase Park once the ramp is completed. We are also looking for other local partners, businesses or skate projects who would like to support our objectives and get involved. 

We are nearly half way there already!

Thanks to a grant of £9,000 in summer 2021 from the National Lottery Community Fund the materials for the ramp have already been purchased. This grant will also help provide skateboard coaching sessions in Chase Park once the ramp is in situ in spring 2022.

We also want to say thank you to Slap Ramps for the initial designs and who will build and install the ramp for us once we have the funds. For more info on Chase Park seewww.friendsofchasepark.co.uk

We hope you will support our campaign and would love to hear from anyone who wants to help get involved at any stage of this project.

Thanks for reading!

This project successfully funded on 11th March 2022