Campaign to reinstall skatepark group after council bans lessons

A skateboarding club is fighting to reinstate its sessions after being forced to close last summer.

Stuart Hopper, 46, of Charlton, was the head coach at Folkestone Gardens Skatepark, in Rolt Street, Deptford, before Lewisham council banned it from taking part in commercial activity in August 2023.

Mr Hopper said he felt the council “bullied” the club into closing after the group objected to the local authority’s proposal to build a play area on to the skatepark.

Last summer Lewisham council began working on plans to extend the play area in Folkestone Gardens by removing the tarmac surrounding the skatepark which acted as a buffer zone between skaters and the playground.

The works – which have since been completed – mean there is no run-up or run-off area for the skatepark users or any flat tarmac for skating on.

Mr Hopper said: “All they did was make it more dangerous. The playground is right up against the skateboarders now, the boards could just fly into the play area.

“Last year we had Jordan Thackeray at the skatepark, he was in the running to be an Olympian. If these guys come off their boards or they skate over the edge they could hit a kid.”

Folkestone Gardens Skatepark set up a petition against the extension last summer, which received 442 signatures.

The petition said: “The council’s plan to eliminate the tarmac area next to the skatepark ignores the needs of skatepark users and increases rather than decreases the risk of injury to users of both areas.”

After raising these concerns the council asked Folkestone Gardens Skatepark to formally apply for a license for their sessions with the contracting company Glendale.

Mr Hopper said: “We supplied all the material requested, including our SkateboardGB accreditation, insurances, DBS checks and met with Glendale. They told us there was no issue and we’d get the licence.

“A week later Glendale emailed us to say that Lewisham council decided that all commercial activity at the park is to stop. We asked why and they wouldn’t tell us.”

Now Mr Hopper is trying to appeal the council’s decision so skating lessons can be safely reinstated.

He said: “We tried running on a donation basis but it didn’t work and we’ve been shut since summer.

“It felt like there was no need for the closure. All the council had to do was a bit of consultation.”

A spokeswoman from Lewisham council said: “As a Council we need to accommodate the needs of the whole community and different people of all ages in the park, from young children and families to adults. We consulted extensively with all park users including School of Skate. Whilst we understand that this organisation is unhappy with some of the decisions made as a result of this consultation, we have to make sure that a fair balance is achieved for all park users.

“We have asked them to cease activities for now until a full review is undertaken before any potential permissions have been applied for and granted. This makes sure that the use of public space is protected and balanced for everybody in the community. We hope to be able to complete this process before the summer.”

Pictured top: Stuart Hopper, back left, with the Folkestone Gardens Skatepark team in 2022 (Picture: Stuart Hopper)