Skateboarding provides all the benefits of physical activity. It provides a valuable outlet for young people, who often feel marginalised by typical sports and recreation provision and are at an age where participation in physical activity often tends to decline. At the same time, however, it is notoriously difficult to develop skateboarding provision that meets the needs of young people - the nature of the activity does not lend itself to organisation.

To address these issues in its area, the St Ives Community Recreation Association (SICRA) commissioned Knight, Kavanagh & Page (KKP) to produce a business plan for skateboarding in the town. The aim was to identify how skateboard provision could be safe, challenging and accessible.

KKP's approach focused on securing the involvement of and ownership felt by two main groups, skaters and local residents.

A series of focus groups were held with skaters and other young people in St Ives. This focused on identifying potential sites for development of a skate park, preferred equipment and the role skaters could play in managing the facility. A key element of the consultation was getting young people to put themselves in the position of local residents and identify potential concerns and solutions.

In consulting with local residents, KKP used the issues and solutions identified by young people as a basis for securing their ‘buy in'. The fact that young people had understood and reacted to the concerns of local residents made this process simpler and quicker.

As a result of this work, a skate park has been developed at a multi-sports venue in St Ives. Both young people and local residents are involved in its management. It is well used and has received positive feedback from both young people and other members of the local community.