Work starts on new £250k skate park for town

Cote Heath skate park, in Buxton, is being replaced with a new one

Work has started to replace an "outdated" skate park in a Derbyshire town.

High Peak Borough Council has invested £250,000 to create the new Cote Heath skate park in Buxton.

The authority said the work was expected to take around six weeks to complete and the new concrete facility should be open before Christmas.

Borough councillor Damien Greenhalgh said this will "refresh" the skate park which has been looking "tired".

'Socialise and move more'

The council said it had been designed and developed in partnership with skate park users, Buxton Junior School, and the community.

It was part of a long-term plan to improve the borough's parks, play areas and open spaces.

Mr Greenhalgh, deputy leader of the council and executive councillor for regeneration, tourism and leisure, told the BBC the authority has a 10 year strategy to invest in parks.

"We've put our money where our mouth is," he said.

"We asked people what they wanted - people said they wanted an improvement in parks.

"Austerity meant our public spaces were not at their best, were not what people wanted and actually wellbeing is everybody's business.

"If people are more unwell, that costs more to the NHS and other local government organisations. This is an investment in our community and we know that it works."

Mr Greenhalgh said there was a "real age spread" at meetings about the skate park.

He added: "Obviously it's more of the younger, and more supple end of the community, but there are definitely older people, as well as parents who want their children to enjoy facilities they did when they were younger.

"We want to create places people can come and enjoy, socialise and move more."