An illustration of how the skate park is expected to look

SPADES went in the ground this Monday as work on the long-awaited Finsbury Park skate park began.

The adventure zone, which is expected to be ready by April, will feature a new deck-style hangout space, a concrete slab for beginners, and moveable objects including kickers, manual pad, kerb and wallie rail.

Co-chair of Friends of Finsbury Park, Beth Anderson from Stroud Green, said: “Skating is well documented to be physically and mentally brilliant for you and I think that’s quite undervalued. I think there’s a lot of funding that goes into football sports and tennis, which are great also, but some­times I think that we think of skateboarding as being something niche for troublesome kids.

Co-chair of Friends of Finsbury Park, Beth Anderson, is backing the scheme

“It’s a really brilliant sport. It’s great for your physical and your mental wellbeing, and it’s a brilliant community to be a part of.”

The project is being funded by Haringey Council, which paid £145,000, and The Friends of Finsbury Park, a charity that crowdfunded for the project and raised more than £45,000 in less than a year.

The facility, designed by Betongpark, can also be used for cycling, roller-skating and scootering and is also wheelchair friendly.

Jacob Fox, 18, who started skating at Finsbury Park Skate Plaza 12 years ago and is from Finsbury Park, said: “It’s really good that they have a skate park in Finsbury Park to get kids away from bad habits.

“Instead, they can go out and skate. I think that’s a good way to lift the community.”

Islington Council claimed the park was only made possible by funding from holding annual music festivals – something local groups have criticised.