A FOUR-year project to improve a sporting facility in Okehampton has provided youngsters with a much improved skate park.

Contractors were last week completing work on a new series of ramps, stairs, down-rails and skating equipment for the skate park at Brayhams Terrace.

The work has incorporated the new ramps and stairs made out of concrete into the existing skate park facility, to add variety and provide a range of levels so that all young people can use the park regardless of their skill level.

Working hard to bring the new skate plaza into existence is the Okehampton Skate Group, a team of young people who have held meetings at Room 13 over the past few years to discuss the future of the skate park and fundraise for the facility.

The team raised around £50,000 for the project, including a £35,000 donation from Okehampton United Charity received earlier this year.

Money has also been raised through fundraising events, including a community open day at Room 13, and through securing other grants such as a £1,000 grant from the Co-operative's Community Fund.

As well as receiving ongoing support from the team at Room 13, Okehampton Community Recreation?Association and Okehampton Town Council have also supported the project.

Adam Keats has spearheaded the skate group, helping to design new ramps and equipment and secure funding.

He said: 'It has taken four years or so to get it all done. Since we got the okay to go ahead with work, it has taken a matter of weeks to get the ramps in and sorted.

'The work is awesome — it looks amazing.

'I think everyone from the group and skaters in the town is going to be pleased with how it has turned out.

'Before, the park was like a classic "council-built" park. It was okay, but you could tell that the ramps, rails and everything had been designed by people who didn't necessarily know that much about skating.

'Now we have a much more modern and larger skating plaza. We have a good proportion and layout, the equipment is better, and it suits our needs more.

'The ramps and everything are of a higher skill level, but not too hard. I think it will make a big difference to a lot of the skaters here.

'I am amazed at what the group has achieved here. We have got an awful lot for our money. There was a similar amount of money spent on a skate park near Okehampton, and it is much smaller than the one here. The money has been spent well.

'We have a fair bit planned. We want to hold a skate competition in the new year to officially open the park. I can't wait to try out the new park for the first time.'

The project looked under threat a few months ago, after the group's initial plan to develop a new skate park met planning difficulties.

The group had applied for planning permission to build a new skate park on land adjacent to the existing facility. It would have also been made out of concrete. The application was withdrawn following a noise assessment, and the future of the project looked in jeopardy.

A few months later, some landscaping issues around the site are the last steps of making the new skate park a reality.

Cllr Christine Marsh, a long-term advocate of the project, said: 'There are still some landscaping issues that need finishing off to tidy everything up, but the main body of the skate park work is now done.

'The new ramps and rails provide the youngsters with the equipment they need. Since the original park equipment was put in, skating has evolved and changed, and these youngsters were keen to get better facilities.

'Like the OCRA sport hub, seeing all these projects moving along and coming to fruition is great for Okehampton.'