Urban sports park F51 is home to the first world’s first suspended concrete skate bowls as well as the tallest climbing venue in the south east.
THE world’s first purpose-built multi-storey skatepark was never supposed to be built at all. Indeed, the original plans for the former bingo hall in Folkestone were for a multi-storey car park, but over the years the plans evolved into an ambitious urban sports park which opened to the public this spring.
Named F51 after its location in the heart of Folkestone, the project was commissioned and funded by the Roger De Haan Charitable Trust. The Trust was established in 1978 by Sir Roger De Haan, chairman of Saga Group, and his late father Sidney, Saga’s founder. One of the Trust’s aims has been to support charities and community groups in and around the Folkestone area, where most of Saga’s employees are based.
Located on the edge of one of the most deprived wards in Kent, the project is a means to support the local community being a gift to Folkestone and youngsters in particular.
project challenges
The project was designed by architects Hollaway Studio and delivered by main contractor the Jenner Group. Less than an hour’s train journey from London St Pancras, the four-storey building is home to the largest lead climbing wall in the Southeast, three skateparks as well as bouldering facilities, a boxing gym and a café/workspace for community use.
F51 is a unique building in many ways. Working with skatepark designers Maverick, the team created three tiers of skate parks suited to all ages and different levels of experience allowing beginners an opportunity to start at the top and work down to the advanced level.
The huge concrete bowls of the ‘bowl floor’ skate level dominates the experience of F51 featuring pool coping, tiles, overpert, skateable pillars and extensions. Suspended above the ground floor, they appear to hang mid-air, defying gravity and dictating the form of the building, creating an extraordinary sensation to stand beneath them from where visitors can view the bowls and hear the skateboards above.
The bowl floor – located at first floor level - provided a major challenge. Constructed from spray concrete it required careful engineering to create an elevated bowl. The shape of the underside of the bowl are visible from the exterior of the building and create a centre point to the ceiling of the entrance level café space.
The façade of the building also presented numerous challenges. Due to the shape of the building – it curves to create a never-ending illusion – bespoke aluminium cladding panels were fabricated. These were fitted to the concrete frame of the building.
Jenner worked with Vinci’s technology centre to test the cladding panels to ensure wind and water resistance (the building is unheated and classed as an outdoor space). They also had to be tested for impact resistance as the centre has been designed so that skaters can exit the bowls and use the walls as part of the experience.
The other two levels – the street park and flow park – use timber. Constructed using plywood by specialist contractor Cambian Engineering, they combine the need for durability with the flexibility to modify and upgrade as skateboarding trends evolve. The street floor features 700sq m of skateable timber as well as a wide range of street-inspired obstacles such as stair sets, ledges, handrails and more. The flow floor offers 650sq m of skateable timber with volcanoes, waterfalls, blends, skateable pillars and hips.
“F51 has been an incredibly challenging project due to the truly bespoke nature of its design, from the suspended concrete bowls of the first floor which structure the entire building, through to the bespoke panellised mesh façade system which has pieced together much like a gigantic jigsaw. But with great challenge comes immense pride in the finished form and the quality of the building and the exceptional facilities it provides is sheer testimony to the unrelenting efforts and dedication of the entire team,” says Ella Brocklebank from Jenner.
“Constructing a world-first and a totally unique building that will act as a catalyst for further regeneration in Folkestone is an important part of our company legacy.”
solution for cramped towns
With climbable surfaces of nearly 600sq m, including top rope, lead climbing (it’s the only lead climbing facility in Kent) and bouldering, F51 has 15 climbing lines and over 30 graded routes with vertical, slab and steep overhang roof sections. The main wall also includes two dedicated speed climbing walls with auto belays and speed timers to test speed and endurance.
At 4.5m high, the 230sq m bouldering area has hundreds of problems across vert, slab, and overhang. The space is a vibrant social hub for climbers and includes a training area with hangboards and campus rungs.
The facility’s boxing gym features a competition-size boxing ring and is home to Folkestone Amateur Boxing Club, which has been running in the community since 1970.
In addition to the activity spaces, F51 commissioned a number of artists, both local and international, to create site specific works which are displayed within the space, as large murals and site specific pieces across the different floors and within the café space.
F51 seeks to put skaters, BMXers and climbers at the forefront of Folkestone, celebrating existing talent and encouraging new beginners to get involved through a range of lessons and inclusive sessions to ensure that there is something for everyone.
The design, location and conception aims to revolutionise the way we look at town/city spaces and how it’s possible to incorporate more facilities for sport and young people within town centres that may already feel cramped and populated.
an extraordinary venue
The independent not-for-profit sports charity, The Sports Trust, has been appointed to manage the facility. Working in Folkestone, Hythe and Romney Marsh, the Trust creates accessible opportunities for sport and physical activity and engages with schools, sports clubs and the local community to overcome the barriers to activity. It will use the new facility as a base from which to support local clubs, strengthening their connections with primary and secondary schools and encouraging people of all ages to adopt a more active lifestyle.
“We are incredibly honored that The Roger De Haan Charitable Trust has gifted this world-class building to The Sports Trust and we are excited to bring this extraordinary venue to life,” said the Trust’s chief executive, Dan Hulme.
“As a charity that has been working in Folkestone for over seven years to create inclusive and inspiring environments for people to love sport, we are confident that Folkestone 51 will bring enviable opportunities and experiences to local people for generations to come.”
Membership for young locals who attend schools in the area, will be offered at a heavily discounted rate making F51 accessible for all of the local community. F51 also aims to attract the large number of locals who had moved away from the town and are now returning to bring up their own families and continue the regeneration of Folkestone.
