Campaigners calling for protections for Bristol skate park impacted by sewage works
Campaigners are calling for protections for a popular Bristol skate park which will close while a new underground sewage tank is built. Hundreds of petitioners are urging Bristol City Council to “ensure a great deal” for the skate park after the works are finished with planned upgrades.
Wessex Water is planning to construct the tank over two years, from spring 2028 to summer 2030. But this timeline is “very much indicative” and will be fleshed out by surveys and investigations due to begin shortly. The tank will prevent sewage going into the River Avon.
The SkateGeorge campaign was launched on Friday, August 28, with a new manifesto that says a destination skate park should be created after the works have finished. The council has already pledged funding to pay for upgrades, and Wessex has promised to put money in too.
The campaign manifesto states: “In late 2025, funding was secured to develop and deliver a new community vision for the park, to improve and protect this unique asset for the generations of skaters, riders and rollers to come. Essential water infrastructure works now delay and disrupt this vision. They will not derail it.”
Campaigners want local skaters to contribute to the design of any upgrades, and funding to be secured against rising costs. They surveyed hundreds of local people, most of whom fear the site will not be properly reinstated or will suffer major overruns. More than three quarters of respondents want interim riding facilities to be provided, while the construction work takes place.
Wessex Water is building the underground storm tank to reduce the frequency of storm overflow discharges, when untreated sewage flows into the river. The tank will store water while a storm passes, and then back into sewers for treatment. Underground tanks are planned elsewhere in Bristol too. New details have been revealed under the Environmental Information Regulations.
The water company will create a compound area of around 8,500 square metres in the park. This will allow access for heavy goods vehicles to deliver materials, space on site to store materials and stockpile excavated material, crane access and a suitable working area for shaft construction, and welfare facilities for staff.
The location was chosen because the skate park is in between two existing combined sewer overflows, which currently discharge to a surface water system beneath the park. The skate park is the “last available open area,” before the sewer traverses deep beneath homes on Chalks Road and beyond.
Manhole surveys are due to begin this month. Then in November, trial hole investigations will take place, and borehole investigations next January. Ground water pumping tests are scheduled for February. The water company’s indicative programme shows construction lasting two years. But it’s unclear how long the work to upgrade the skate park would take afterwards.
A spokesman for Wessex Water said: “When the design is completed, our construction programme will be confirmed. There are no plans to shut the skate park until construction begins and the ongoing operation of the skate park is a matter for those that run the park, not Wessex Water.
“Where the surveys may have some short-term impact on the park, we will be writing to both local customers and stakeholders to inform them in advance, as has happened with the upcoming investigations, but these will be smaller areas within the park and will not see the whole area closed off.”