Who We Are
As an independently funded skatepark, we rely on passionate volunteers to make it what it is today and what it will be in the future.
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Brian Stephens
Trustee and one of the founders of Hereford Skatepark
Brian Stephens, born in London, lived in Hereford for about 40 years. 5 children, 10 grandchildren.
Studied fine art at Hammersmith College of Art, London 1967-70, always a practising artist.
Now retired, previously BT Call Centre Manager, Hereford, Cheltenham, Dudley also Governor at Hereford College of Arts and Bishop of Hereford's Bluecoat School,
Chair of Hereford Arts in Action, Hereford Young Enterprise and Hereford Education and Business Partnership.
Not a skateboarder himself but a father and grandfather of skateboarders.
Saff Waters
Treasurer
Saff has spent over 20 years teaching Outdoor Education to young people and adults and now works with the Adults and Community team, Herefordshire Council.
She has a passion for providing support for young people to fulfil their hopes and dreams. Saff became involved with the park in 2011 as a trustee and as treasurer in September of 2021.
Saff believes the park offers an invaluable place for people of all ages to develop their passion for skateboarding in a well managed park that is open to all.
Charlie Arthur
Chair
Charlie works as a heritage consultant and has been a skatepark trustee for almost 2 years. He's recently taken up skateboarding again at the age of 44 and loving every minute. Back in the late 80s and early 90s when Charlie first learnt to skate there just weren't any skateparks like this. He remains consistently blown away by the amazing atmosphere and the level of talent on display and feels that we are incredibly lucky to have this skatepark in our city.
Beth Howells
Volunteer and girl skate event organiser
Beth has been skating at the park since she was 13 years old. She says
“It is such a rad park, over the years of skating it you learn so many lines and how to get your
way around it. There’s a sick mix of transition and street, propa good flow so it’s super fun to
skate." Beth leads our popular girl’s night at HSP and is confident that soon there will be just
as many girl skaters as there are boys. She also happens to be one of the top
female skaters in the country and came 5th in the 2021 National Championships.
Amelia Lazniewska
Volunteer
Amelia is 13, she has been skating for just over a year, and says "I go quite often and I love it
because it's just really fun."
Megan Browne
Volunteer
Megan is 15 and goes to the skatepark around 3 times a week. She says "I love the skatepark
because it’s got such good bowls and really nice people, I’m also addicted to skating because
you can go really fast." Megan feels that it would be cool if more girls took up skating and
that is why she helps organise our popular girl’s night.
Joe Sutton
Boom Box Skate Shop Manager
Joe is a skateboarder for 12+ years and started skateboarding when Phase 2 of the skatepark opened. He’s been involved with the Skateparks growth since he was a teenager and with others, went to the town council back in 2012 to secure the final funding for the phase 3 expansion.
Joe has moved back to Hereford in 2021 after spending some time up North and was inspired by what the local Skateshops were doing for the scene. Shout out to Welcome Leeds, Endemic Huddersfield and Note Manchester! Joe is a volunteer, trustee and store manager for the BoomBox Hereford.
If you see joe say Hi!
James Newby
Trustee
James is Co-founder of JRN Group Digital. He has volunteered at the skatepark for many years and has also provided aerial imagery and photography for social media platforms. The skatepark allowed him to grow his creative skill set and turn his hobby into my full-time job.
James has been involved in various projects including the Co-Op advert filming for which he provided behind the scenes aerial filming. He also skates when he finds some spare time.
Rob Newby
Trustee
Rob is a skateboarder, a photographer and Co-founder of JRNGroup Digital.
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He began taking pictures of his friends at the skatepark when he was 11 years old, and is now a full time professional photographer.
He's photographing more commercial projects than skateboarding these days but returning to the Hereford Skatepark family after a long trip away is always warming.
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Kris Lee
Trustee
Kris is a Painter and Decorator. He's 34 years old and has been skateboarding for around 11 years. He stopped when he was younger and took the sport back up at a later age and he's glad he did! It’s given him so much and that’s why he's here giving back to something he loves so much. Kris says "skateboarding is more than just a sport, it’s a way of life…"
Jay Davies
Coach and skatepark manager
Jay has been a key figure at Hereford Skatepark for over ten years. He has led the coaching and run the Boom Box skate shop since 2015. His mission has been to get as many people into skateboarding as he can. Every summer when Jay 'takes a break' from the skatepark, he goes off to build and run the pop up skatepark at Glastonbury.
Mike Gribben
Volunteer
Mike Gribben, aka Barry Wango, rides for AMFAS skateboards and is one of Hereford’s best
known skaters. He says “This skatepark has been a second home to me for years of my life.
Love everything about it and the people involved here.”
Dave Fildes
Volunteer
Dave began coaching at Hereford Skatepark in 2013 whilst still in high school. He also
helped organised charity events such as the Skate4Cancer comp and live music event
which raised over £1500 and was part of the team that got the Boombox shop going back in
2015. The experience Dave gained at Hereford Skatepark has enabled him to work
at skate schools in the USA where he currently lives.
Daniel Grice
Trustee
Founder/Project Lead at Hereford Cycle HUB C.I.C.
Daniel got involved with the skatepark after seeing what an amazing space it is and understanding its worth within the community.
Jobie Hoar
Trustee
Jobie started learning skateboarding in the summer of 2021 at the age of 46 and caught the bug. He loves Hereford Skatepark's buzz and vibe which is a credit to all the guys at the park and behind the scenes.
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He's really pleased to be a part of such a fantastic facility which has already helped him through some hard times.
Julian Pilkington
Trustee
Julian and is 45 and has been a trustee for last 3 years.
He has worked in the design and construction industry for last 25 years and spends his time building, making and fixing things.
He's passionate about getting outside to stay sane and healthy and loves all sports on bikes and boards.
He was born on a bike, snowboarded half his life, skated for a lot less!
Col Hamilton
Trustee
Founder and Managing Director of CUP Ceramics Community CIC, Hereford.
Col became really interested in the amazing and inspiring resource that is Hereford Skatepark while trying to learn to skate in COVID-19 lockdown with his 6 and 8 year old boys, Fin and Kit. He is excited about watching them develop as exciting young skaters and has ambitions himself to become a mediocre old skater one day.
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He is passionate about supporting Hereford Skate Park to contend with the best parks in the UK, whilst maintaining a positive, diverse and inclusive community for locals and for visitors alike.
Dale Rouse
Trustee
Dale was a skater from mid 70s to mid 80s when the first Hereford skatepark (known as Hog Town) in Westfailing Street was the place to go. He's been working in British archaeology since the early 1980s and for the last 7 years has also been working in care with people with mental health problems. He's been involved with the new skatepark for over 10 years and still skates occasionally and still loves it. He also collects skateboard stuff from the 70s and 80s. His passions include live music, skateboarding, archaeology and 12th century mediaeval architecture and sculpture.
George Barnes-Jones
BMX Coach
George is 23 years old and has been coming to the skatepark regularly since he was 16. He now works in Halfords just across the road and says “I love Hereford Skatepark because of the amazing atmosphere. I hope through the coaching courses I offer that I can encourage more people to start riding and help them progress.”
