The parish council gave the scheme the go-ahead at this month's meeting, and chairman of Heacham Skateboard Association, Marcus Zeebroek, is thrilled.

He said: "I'm pleased for the youngsters because it's something they want, and for the skateboard association because they've put so much work into it."

The park will be built on a 98ft by 30ft plot (30m by 9m) at the Staithe Road end of the recreation ground, and the parish council will give this section to the association.

Thanks to £44,558 from the Government's Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which will fund all the equipment, preparing the ground and laying the surface, building will start in the middle of December. Mr Zeebroek hopes the park will open on April 1, 2006.

A £3,600 grant from West Norfolk Council will pay for a security fence and £4,000, raised by the skateboard association, will cover at least three year's insurance and maintenance.

The fight for the facility started in 2002 when Heacham Skateboard Association was set up in response to a letter to the parish council, from youngsters asking for a skatepark.

At the time councillors thought the equipment would be too noisy to put on the recreation ground, but a two-year search by the association found no other suitable locations.

In August last year members went back to the council with plans to use up-to-date equipment which made much less noise, and in February 2005 councillors voted unanimously to put the park on the recreation ground – but only when funding had been secured.

He said the equipment would be made of sound-proofed material, making a noise no louder than that heard by someone in a house when a car passed by.

The planned location had previously met with opposition, with some residents concerned about noise levels and fears large groups of young people would congregate at the site.

A 38-signature petition against the site was presented to parish councillors at their January meeting, but the skateboard association responded with a letter signed by 163 people, urging councillors not to change their minds.

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