Have Your Say on Crabtree Pump Track in Camberley
A New Pump Track Could Join Crabtree’s Skate Park
If you have walked or cycled through Crabtree Recreation Ground in Camberley recently, you will have seen the work going on around the new skate park. Now Surrey Heath Borough Council is asking residents whether a pump track should be built alongside it. For anyone who has not come across one, a pump track is a looping circuit of rolling bumps and banked corners. Riders keep moving by pushing down into the dips and rising up the next slope, so they rarely need to pedal. It suits bikes, scooters and skateboards, and it is designed to be forgiving enough for beginners while still giving experienced riders a proper challenge.
The rec is one of the most used open spaces in the town. Families walk their dogs there, children kick balls on the grass, and older teenagers gather near the existing play areas. Putting a pump track beside the skate park would concentrate wheeled activity in one place, which could keep younger riders away from busy footpaths and roads. It would also give Camberley another facility that families can use without travelling to a club or paying for a session. For a town where many young people rely on local parks rather than private leisure centres, that kind of free, open access matters a great deal.
Who Stands to Gain, and Who Has a Say
The decision sits with Surrey Heath Borough Council, and the councillor responsible for leisure, Morgan Rise, has described the track as another exciting addition to the borough’s facilities. The council believes the site is well placed to draw visitors from across the area, and it sees the track as a larger-wheeled sports facility that local people of all ages could enjoy. Those are the claims the consultation is designed to test, so residents who use the rec, or who live close by, are the people best placed to say whether they hold up.
The immediate beneficiaries are young riders and their parents, along with the skateboarders and BMX riders who already treat the area as a meeting point. Local bike shops could also see more custom from people who want to try the track or buy equipment for it. Meanwhile, homeowners on the streets around the rec will feel any construction work most directly, from delivery lorries to the hum of machinery. Some of them may be balancing that against plans of their own, such as a loft conversion or loft rebuilding, and it is worth knowing that firms like Guilford builders often work across the borough, so the construction sector is never far away from these local decisions.
What Residents Can Do Before 3 December
The money earmarked for the track, £300,000, comes from the Community Infrastructure Levy. This is a charge placed on some new developments in the area, and councils use the proceeds to pay for local services and facilities. In other words, the funding comes from growth in the borough rather than from general council budgets, and the council has said it will only proceed after the consultation has been carried out. That condition gives residents real leverage, but only if they respond.
The consultation closes on 3 December, so there is limited time to make your views known. Read the proposals on the council’s website, consider how the track would affect noise, parking, and access for people with pushchairs or mobility aids, and send your response. If you want to go further, contact your local councillors and ask what happens after the consultation closes, including when a decision is expected and whether the design will be changed in light of feedback.
In the coming months, watch for the published consultation results, any changes to the proposed layout, and the timetable for construction. Those details will show whether the council is listening. Camberley residents have a rare chance to shape a facility on their doorstep, and the deadline is closer than it looks.
Source: Consultation on pump track next to Crabtree skate park in Surrey
