The Front first opened in July 2001, the result of a three-year campaign organised by local parents and young people. The group presented a 5,000+ signature petition to Weymouth & Portland Borough Council, asking for help to provide much-needed extreme sports facilities. The Council donated the disused filling station site on the seafront at Lodmoor, providing the group could raise the funds to develop it as a community skatepark.

By January 2001, the group had succeeded in raising over £350,000 from seven local funding partners plus the SW Regional Development Agency and the Sport England Lottery Fund. They also won an Awards for All grant to help with start-up costs and the grand opening, and a revenue grant towards staff wages and training awarded by the Community Fund, which will continue to benefit the project until the end of 2005.

In Feb 2001 the campaign group became a registered charity, reconstituted as Weymouth Skatepark Association. The Association's Executive Committee includes three elected officers, up to three elected and three co-opted members, and representatives nominated by Weymouth & Portland Borough Council, West Dorset District Council, and Dorset County Council. All 18-and-over Sk8park members have a vote at the Association AGMs.

The donated site took 6 months to redevelop, with work beginning in Feb 2001. The project architect was Brian Watts, Proctor Associates, Shaftesbury, and the main contractor was the Beacon Building Company, Weymouth. The original wooden ramps were designed and built on site by Dave Childs, Rampchild, Northants ('Derby Storm' and 'Radlands' designer), helped by local young people, and have been developed and upgraded since the opening.

The Front continues to live up to the campaign's expections. It is a state-of-the-art centre for skateboard, rollerblade and BMX, with an open-air bowl, halfpipe and spine set-up under a canopy, an outdoor streetcourse, and a dedicated beginners area with sheltered section recently funded by the Local Network Fund. It has its own carpark, and benefits from an indoor social area with pool table and video, and a snackbar.

Weymouth Skatepark Association's aim is to make The Front as accessible as possible, and to offer a wide range of extreme sports opportunities. Sessions run all year round, after school, at weekends, in school holidays, and at other times by arrangement. Events are a highlight of the Sk8park calendar. The ramps are suitable for all ages and abilities, and low-key supervision and support is provided by first-aid trained staff and Sk8park volunteers. Everyone is welcome, including groups (under-8s need to be accompanied by an adult).

There is a simple membership scheme, entry fees are kept as low as possible, and helmets can be hired, as can some skateboards and rollerblades. A popular volunteering scheme allows local young people to use the ramps in exchange for helping out with routine tasks. User feedback is always welcome, and users have the opportunity to play a part in the planning of major developments.

For more information about Weymouth Skatepark Association or the Skatepark Campaign, please email us.