Delight as long-awaited new skate park in Raunds approved with construction set to begin next month

The initiative from Raunds Town Council has been a long time coming after the previous ramps on the site were decommissioned in 2020.

A council spokesman said: “We are thrilled to announce that planning permission has been granted for the new Raunds Skate Park and Pump Track at Amos Lawrence Park.

“Our appointed contractor Bendcrete Skate Parks, who have designed the facility, will be arriving on site in December to begin construction. We can't wait to see the project take shape and are looking forward to bringing a fantastic new space for outdoor fun to our community. “There’s been a couple of minor modifications to the original designs to address concerns raised during the consultation process, but we are delighted that the plans have been approved and we can now press forward.”

A crowdfunder was set up by the town council in January to raise the funds needed to put the plan into action, with the formal submission to North Northants Council in June. On November 6, the application was permitted.

The new ramps themselves will feature a ‘pump track’ aimed at younger children and novices, as well as more conventional quarter-pipe ramps, all sitting on the footprint of the old skatepark.

Concerns had been raised by local people in the build-up to the application’s approval with regards to traffic and noise, however the NNC officer’s report notes that nearby residential properties are far enough from the skate park and car park that any associated noise would not have an adverse impact, and that noise from football matches and children using the skate park already occur, thus the new development wouldn’t pose a new problem.

The approval means work is scheduled to begin next month to prepare Amos Lawrence Park for the facility, which will soon include an accessible footpath from the skate park to the car park, and a small seating area for the skatepark users and carers. The existing car park will also be expanded from 28 spaces to 68 spaces.

Some compromises were made, however, as the town council agreed to moving the pump track above the skatepark so as to not impact the football pitches or lights nearby, following an objection from Sport England.

Planning documents say that the council was keen to have the two facilities in close proximity to allow people to ‘flow from one facility to the other.’