Penrith Skate Park Transformed Through £8,000 Community Project
Penrith Skate Park has been given a colourful new look after hundreds of young people helped transform the site through an £8,000 community street art project.
Professional artists worked alongside local children and teenagers to replace unwanted graffiti with bright artwork based on ideas created by young people.
The project was designed to improve the appearance of the skate park while giving its users a greater sense of pride and ownership.
Hundreds of Young People Help Design New Look
Around 400 young people took part in an engagement week during the spring. The sessions included lessons about street art, opportunities to share ideas and workshops where participants could decorate an empty spray can with their own designs.
Professional street artists Dave and Lily, from DVision Art, provided spray-painting lessons with support from youth workers at The Outside Club.
Ideas produced during these sessions were then developed into draft designs for the skate park’s main painting event.
Children and Teenagers Paint Skate Park
The community painting took place during the opening days of the school summer holidays.
Younger children aged seven to ten began by painting large shapes, backgrounds and simpler parts of the design. Young people aged ten to 13 then added more detailed work.
Teenagers aged 13 and over, alongside some younger participants, completed the more complex elements and added further layers to the artwork.
Dave and Lily then spent another three days working with invited young people to complete the project.
Project Aims to Reduce Antisocial Behaviour
Before the makeover, the skate park had become associated with several forms of antisocial behaviour. Reported problems included offensive graffiti, litter, fly-tipping, fires, assaults and drug and alcohol use.
The Penrith Street Art Project aimed to create a more welcoming environment and encourage young people to look after the facility.
Westmorland and Furness Council said the skate park became noticeably busier within hours of reopening, with people using it for skateboarding, cycling and scooting.
Nearby residents have also reportedly noticed an increase in positive behaviour around the site.
Councillor Judith Derbyshire, cabinet member for community safety, said the work had given young people an opportunity to take ownership of the skate park. She added that the area now has a new sense of energy and is attracting people in a more positive way.
How Was the £8,000 Project Funded?
The makeover was paid for entirely through grants, fundraising and donations.
Funding included:
- £5,350 from the Home Office through the Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner’s Operation Enhance programme
- £1,900 from Penrith Place Action Group
- £500 from local elected member donations
- £250 raised by Cumbria Police Cadets
JT Atkinson Builders Merchant also donated exterior boards and paint after visiting the painting event.
The boards have been installed at the skate park to give people inspired by the project a dedicated place to practise street art. It is hoped this will help protect the new designs and reduce graffiti on nearby buildings.
Schools, Police and Community Groups Involved
The project was led by Richard Scoffham, Eden Local Focus Hub manager at Westmorland and Furness Council.
Partners included Ullswater Community College, Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, Eden Valley Artistic Network, Cumbria Constabulary, Cumbria Police Cadets and The Outside Club.
Mr Scoffham said the idea followed the success of previous pop-up pump-track events in Penrith, where young people had shown pride in the facility and supported other users.
He thanked the hundreds of children, teenagers and adults who contributed to the workshops, designs and community painting days.
