In a blow to skateboarders young and old in London, one of the city’s largest skate parks – and purportedly the only complete indoor skate park in the city – is set to close down. The Barking Better Extreme skate park will shut in just a few days, making way for padel courts.
The closure of the Barking skate park, which was made using public funding, is a blow to the community. The local user base ranges widely, from “skateboarders [to] scooter riders, BMXers and roller skaters, complete beginners and national competitors, 6-year-olds and 60-year-olds.”
Despite local pushback, the skate park is due to close on August 2.
Why is the Barking skate park being closed?
The operator of the skate park, GLL (under the gym brand name Better), has cited consistent losses as the reason behind the closure. As Huck reports:
‘GLL has cited a lack of revenue behind the decision. A spokesperson for GLL said: “GLL has run Barking Sporthouse for the past 13 years. During that time, the indoor skate park has operated at a financial loss every year. Despite a range of initiatives designed to increase participation, usage has continued to decline.“‘
Local skateboarders are encouraged to make use of the area’s outdoor skate parks, but parents and skaters have cited issues with safety and park maintenance. Wheeled sports are also weather dependent, and the indoor venue makes them more accessible throughout the year.
Padel vs skateboarding
The change comes as padel facilities have popped up all across the city – often taking over existing park space or community areas. You can currently find padel facilities in the O2, Bermondsey, Earl’s Court, Shoreditch, Canary Wharf, Battersea, and beyond.
The booming sport has found a large new audience, and operators are incentivised by its burgeoning popularity and relative compactness. Three padel courts can typically be slotted into a space that would otherwise hold one full tennis court.
The decision to convert the Barking skate park to padel courts comes just a few years before skateboarding becomes one of the mandatory sports at the Summer Olympics. It’s set to be a mandatory sport in the Athens Summer Olympics in 2028. Padel is not currently an Olympic sport – discretionary or mandatory.
A petition has been launched to “Save Barking Better Extreme Indoor Skatepark”. At the time of writing, it had 3,545 signatures.
A recent update on the petition states:
“The London Deputy Mayor for Communities and Social Justice has emailed GLL asking if they would consider pausing the closure of our skatepark next week and meet [the petition organisers] at the table for a discussion.”
