This year marks a major milestone for Poole Communities Trust, as the charity celebrates 10 years of working alongside local communities to improve lives and create lasting opportunities. Established in 2015, the Trust has spent the past decade supporting some of Poole’s most underserved areas by helping communities take ownership of their own spaces and projects.
In this anniversary year, one of the most ambitious and community-driven projects yet is taking shape. A new skatepark for Turlin Moor, developed in partnership with local group Play Moor Skate Moor.
Turlin Moor is an area with one of the highest populations of children and young people across the BCP region. However, it has long lacked safe, accessible and inclusive recreational facilities for older children and teenagers. The need for this skatepark is clear and after several years of work behind the scenes, the project is now ready to move into its final phase.
The proposed site is a disused and overgrown car park that once housed a community centre over 20 years ago. Since then, it has remained completely unused and has become a waste ground which could be completely transformed. Thanks to support from BCP Council, Poole Communities Trust now has a Memorandum of Understanding to redevelop the land into a professionally designed, modern skatepark that will serve both local residents and visitors from across the wider Poole area.
This skatepark forms the second stage of a two-part project developed by Play Moor Skate Moor. The first stage, a new children’s play area, was completed in 2019 and has already become a valued space used by hundreds of local families each week. The addition of the skatepark will extend this provision to older children and young people, offering them a place to learn new skills, be active, and connect with others in a safe and positive environment.
The Trust is working with Maverick Skateparks, one of the UK’s leading skatepark designers, to ensure the design reflects community input. Earlier this year, local residents and young people took part in a consultation to help shape the final design. The resulting plans are now ready and the project is only one step away from becoming a reality.
To complete the skatepark, Poole Communities Trust has launched a Crowdfunder campaign, calling on businesses, organisations and individuals to support this transformational project. Every donation, share or show of support will help bring this much-needed facility to life.
As Poole Communities Trust celebrates a decade of partnership, place-based development and community action, the Turlin Moor Skatepark stands as a symbol of what local collaboration can achieve and what’s possible when communities are given the tools and support, they need to shape their own future.
To support the campaign or to learn more, visit www.poolecommunitiestrust.org.uk or search Turlin Moor Skatepark on Crowdfunder.