YOUNGSTERS with nowhere to go to make the most of their rollerblades, skateboards and BMX bikes have renewed pleas for help from a council.
It is not the first time that the Richmondshire district authority has tried to find a site for a new facility, suitable for any of the various wheeled crazes that are now an established part of youth culture.
However, the momentum was lost when there was no early success - at least until 13-year-old Alasdair Alexander, of Skeeby, wrote to leisure chiefs at Swale House last week, urging their department to keep trying.
"It's been going on for years, but we just don't seem to get anywhere,'' he said.
"We don't need much space and it could be indoor or outdoor. There must be somewhere in Richmond.''
Alasdair and his friends said the facilities could even be run as a business, with membership fees and small admission prices helping to recoup costs.
"There could even be somewhere to buy drinks," he said.
Backing Alasdair is 13-year-old Robert James who said youngsters on skateboards were often labelled as troublemakers, even if they were not.
"We use the school playgrounds, as there is nowhere else to go, but then we get blamed for damage, even if we did not cause it.
"If we had somewhere to go, it would not be a problem," he said.
Alasdair's letter has not gone unheeded - leisure officer, Geoff Thompson, has confirmed that talks are to be held this week in an attempt to revitalise the search for a solution.
Richmond ward councillor Jane Metcalfe said: "We cannot make any promises as the council's budgets are very tight.
"However, we may be able to help unlock other sources of funds and would be delighted to hear from the young people involved who could perhaps arrange a delegation so we could find out exactly what they want."
The idea also has the backing of Richmond police.
Sergeant Mick Griffiths said: "This is their town as much as it is anyone else's.
"Richmond does not have a youth forum, so perhaps if one was set up, they could have a say in what goes on.''
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