A WEYMOUTH skate park will soon welcome a new ramp thanks to a generous Dorset business.

Weymouth-born shoe store tReds stepped up to the plate and have funded a bowl ramp at The Front Skatepark.

The new £2,200 addition, which has been proudly named the ‘tReds Bowl’, is currently being built and surfaced ready for the upcoming season.

It comes after a difficult winter season at local charitable facility The Front on Preston Beach Road, which has been suffering due to the wild weather that hit the county in recent weeks.

The activity park opened in 2001 as a result of a three-year campaign by parents and young people.

More than £350,000 was raised by different funding bodies including the county council and the borough council.

Weymouth Skatepark Association treasurer Lisa Kille said: “This winter has been very hard for The Front – the weather has had a bad impact on our business, like many others in the local area.

“This is a very generous donation from tReds to our charity, to help towards building a new bowl that will be unique to the area.

“We have a strong base of regular riders at The Front and a lot of visitors, this will help bring more people to the park and more revenue to keep this wonderful charity afloat.

“I would like to thank tReds for their support to us – without their help this project would have had to wait for quite some time to be completed.

“I know that all the riders that come here will be so pleased to see it built.”

Steve Kavanagh, company managing director of tReds, added: “We believe that The Front is a worthwhile cause and being local, we decided that we could support each other as local businesses.”

Skatepark shop manager Stuart Felstead, said: “Skating bowls are such good fun.

“I know it will bring a lot of skateboarders into the park.”

It’s open to the public seven days a week – depending on the weather – and is also available for private hire and birthday events.

In December 1996, tReds was born in Weymouth and quickly expanded into nearby towns Poole and Bournemouth.

There are a total of 33 stores today. For more information visit weymouthskatepark. co.uk or call 01305 771301.