The Skateboarding Foundation Trustees’ Annual Report and Accounts
1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 Charity Number 1166397
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Reference and administration details
Trustees Paul Rompani, Chairman & Secretary David Hughes Ryan Davies Simon Leach Rosalyn Johnston-Flint (from 29 Jan 2024) Registered name The Skateboarding Foundation Charity's principal address: 215 New North Road, London, N1 7BF Charity registration number 1166397
Trustees' Report
The trustees of The Skateboarding Foundation are pleased to present their annual report together with accounts for the period 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024.
It was just brilliant from start to finish. My two children had the most amazing week, and it was lovely to see their confidence grow!
Structure, governance and management
The charity is constituted as a Charitable Incorporated Organization (CIO) with a constitution as its governing document.
Overall responsibility for the charity rests with the trustees who are charged with setting and monitoring the strategic direction of the charity and for establishing policy. No members of staff are employed to manage the charity. The trustees, who meet annually, delegate the day-to-day operation of the charity to the Chair who reports to the trustees on a regular basis. The trustees take responsibility for monitoring the charity’s activities and constant regard is had to the skills mix of the trustees to ensure that the board of trustees has all the necessary skills required to contribute fully to the charity’s development.
The charity has five trustees (and can have between three and 12 trustees). Charity trustees may be appointed for an unlimited time and will appoint new charity trustees. The trustees may from time to time appoint additional trustees either to fill casual vacancies or by way of co-option to the board.
The charity trustees make available to each new charity trustee, on or before his or her first appointment, a copy of the current version of the constitution, a copy of the Strategic Plan and a copy of the charity’s latest Trustees’ Annual Report and Accounts.
No trustee received any remuneration for services as a trustee during the period. No trustee had any beneficial interest in any contract with the charity during the period.
The names of the trustees who served during the period (and in office at the date on which this report was approved) are set out as part of the reference and administrative details of this annual report and accounts.
I liked how the coaches were really nice, and they were very supportive, and they helped me learn a lot of skills I didn't know I could do.
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Objectives and activities
The objects of the charity as set out in its governing document are:
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To help young people, especially but not exclusively through skateboarding, to develop their skills and abilities to enable them to fulfil their potential and participate in society as mature and responsible individuals.
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To promote the amateur sport of skateboarding for the benefit of the public, in particular but not exclusively young people
The charity’s vision is a world where all young people are provided the opportunity to fulfil their potential.
The charity’s mission is to make a difference to the lives of young people through skateboarding.
The trustees referred to the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit and relevant supplementary guidance when reviewing the charity’s aims and activities for the year and the organisational plans for future periods.
The primary activity of the charity involves training young skateboarders (aged 16 to 20) to deliver a programme to teach children and young people (aged 7 to 12) to learn to skateboard, in a structured and supportive environment, as a platform to develop their skills and abilities to enable them to fulfil their potential and participate in society as mature and responsible individuals.
We aim to do this by:
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Recruiting, training and supporting young skateboarders to coach children to skateboard.
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Providing accessible and free (or affordable) opportunities to attend skateboarding camps providing tuition and equipment to teach beginner children and young people to skate and in so doing develop their skills and abilities.
They both loved learning and practicing skills in a relaxed setting. They loved their coaches who they looked forward to seeing each day. It's been great timing with the Olympic
skateboarding being on, and the course has made them big skateboarding fans! They're able to explain techniques and tricks and have improved their confidence.
Skateboarding, like many other sports and activities, has many great benefits. Children who begin skateboarding at an early age learn to love physical activity and will often enjoy the health benefits of that activity for years to come. Skateboarding is also an ideal cross trainer for other sports such as surfing and snowboarding. Other benefits of skateboarding include:
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Improves balance, coordination and flexibility
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Develops muscle strength, endurance and cardiovascular fitness
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Encourages visualisation and goal setting
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Increases concentration, focus and persistence
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Promotes individuality and creativity
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Promotes teamwork and group participation
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Builds social skills
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Teaches sports competence and develops skills required for multiple sports
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Teaches sportsmanship and fair play
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Develops life skills such as independence, a positive attitude and respect for others
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Learning to skateboard and skateboarding:
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Requires dedication - teaches young people the need for dedication, perseverance and commitment to achieve a goal
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Develops identity - skateboarding enhances social skills and helps young people develop a positive sense of identity, belonging and connectedness with the community and society as a whole
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Builds confidence - skateboarding boosts confidence, self-esteem and the knowledge that young people can make things happen in their life
All children and young people are eligible for support from the charity. Children and young people are engaged through outreach programmes and activities developed in consultation with partners in the public and not for profit sectors.
It was brilliant! I liked that I now have lots of confidence and know how to balance.
Risk management
We have a Risk Management Policy that considers risks related to working with children and vulnerable people and includes a Risk Register that identifies all risks with existing countermeasures, which include:
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All coaches will have undergone Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks.
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All equipment used will be built and installed to BS EN 14974.
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Full third party (public liability) insurance of £5 million.
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At least one first aid trained person will be on site during the programme.
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Parents asked to provide consent re photographing/filming their child and emergency treatment.
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Coaches undertake risk assessments of venues and the activities in question.
We have a zero-tolerance policy for skateboarding without protection. We provide the appropriate safety equipment recommended including head, wrist, elbow, knee and full body protection products in children's styles and sizes. All our protective clothing and pads are of the highest quality and helmets are UK and EU certified to the EN 1078 standard. The products are designed to be lightweight and comfortable for easier wearing and a safer ride.
A single coach can have up to 10 learners in a class (although we prefer to have two coaches for every 10 learners). This is not only for the safety of the children, but it also allows for enough time to be spent on one-to-one coaching and support. All coaches undergo training in how to teach children and young people to skateboard, which has been informed by the BASI (British Association of Snowsport Instructors) and Skateboard GB ‘Get Rolling’ qualifications.
Learning new skills, making friends, the cool and kind coach’s, being able to do awesome tricks now.
Achievements and performance
In 2024 we only managed to deliver one weeklong coaching programme, in Farnham, where we also delivered a weeklong programme in 2023. This is due to only two of the trustees being willing and able to coordinate the programme. See below for future plans to expand the delivery of the programme.
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Farnham Programme
Thirty-two (32) children (11 girls and 21 boys) between the ages of 7 and 13 from six different schools, based in or around Farnham, Surrey, attended the five-day coaching programme at Farnham Skatepark from 10.00am to 1.00pm from 29 July to 2 August 2024.
The children and young people who participated in programme not only had a better experience than they thought they would but spoke openly about enjoying themselves, making new friends, improving their skateboarding, getting out of their comfort zones, having at least one celebratory moment and learning something about themselves and others.
Eight potential coaches between the ages of 16 and 18 were recruited and interviewed. Six of the eight were able to coach during the programme. These six coaches delivered the programme to three age groups. One of the coaches was female and five were male.
The day-to-day logistics and coordination of the coaching was managed by the Farnham based trustee David Hughes with support from London based founder/Chairman Paul Rompani. We were kindly permitted to store the equipment in the Farnham Leisure Centre adjacent to the skatepark.
Every morning a risk assessment and any risk mitigation actions were undertaken. We provided helmets, boards, knee pads, wrist guards and elbow pads to those learners who didn’t have their own.
The programme involved daily warm-up and a progression through the Skateboarding Foundation coaching programme, EduSkate (further information about which is available). The learners progressed faster than we were expecting and by the end of the third day on both weeks all the younger learners were able to push off and turn both on the flat and on ramps whilst the older learners were ‘dropping in’ to steeper ramps.
All parents registered their children on an online form providing contact details, details about their son’s/daughter’s skateboarding experience and giving consent to medical treatment (if required) and photographs and video being taken.
We created a private closed Facebook Group for parents and family members of the learners for us to communicate with and share photos and videos. We also emailed parents to ensure we communicated with them all.
Feedback was received informally in person, by email and on the private Facebook Group. The feedback from the learners and their parents was universally positive. A separate document has been created showing all feedback received during the week (available on request), some of which is shown in boxes throughout this report. 12 parents of 16 learners completed the online evaluation form. Some responses are shown below:
Q: How do you rate The Skateboarding Foundation overall?
A: 11 of 12 (100%) rated 5 out of 5 (Excellent) with 1 rating 4 out of 5 (Very Good)
Q: Would your son/daughter attend a future week or weekend programme?
A: 11 of 12 responded ‘Definitely’ and 1 responded ‘Probably’
Q: Would you recommend The Skateboarding Foundation programme to others?
A: 100% (12) responded ‘Definitely’
Thank you for putting on a great week for our children to learn a new skill, be outside and meet new people.
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Fundraising
Thank you to the individuals and organisations that provided financial and in-kind support during the year.
Financial Donations
In June Glasgow based skateboarders Rain Roswell and Kyle McKechnie raised £362 from a sponsored 44 miles skate from Helensburgh on the west coast of Scotland to just outside of Falkirk on the east coast of Scotland
In July/August nine parents of learners at the Farnham Skate Camp donated £507 following the conclusion of the programme.
In October we received a £1,000 donation from an employee of Team Lewis through their employee donation programme.
Thank you for putting this on and giving them a great experience.
In Kind Donations
In May, o3e (a company that works with corporates on team-building challenges that give back to charity) donated four skateboards assembled and decorated by their client Porsche.
In June the C-Wise Group (that also works with corporates on team-building challenges) donated 10 skateboards decorated by their client.
In July the owner of a skateboard brand called Onda Skateboards, which was no longer operating, contacted us about donating 250 skateboard decks. We collected them, are currently storing them and will donate them to learners in future programmes.
The girls loved returning this year. Thank you so much for running it again, I have made a donation and really hope they can return again next year. It will be M’s last year, and she has said she would like to come and help the little ones when she is too old to attend!
Future plans
In 2025 we aim to establish a Skateboarding Foundation Chapter in Farnham comprising volunteers who will be responsible for coordinating future skateboard coaching programmes to be delivered during holidays and/or weekends at the Farnham Skatepark. These volunteers would be responsible for looking after and maintaining equipment and the First Aid Kit, undertaking daily risk assessments, preparing the skatepark for the learners, attaching branded banners and liaising with the coaches. They would also engage the local community (and corporate, public and not-for-profit organisations) to help raise awareness and funds.
Following what we learned from delivering the Farnham programme we have revised our launch ‘model’ budget, policies, procedures and programme to ensure we can achieve our objectives efficiently and effectively with future launches in other towns and cities.
Given the challenges of delivering a coaching programme in multiple locations during the year with limited capacity, in 2025/26 we hope to develop and implement a social franchise model whereby we recruit and engage volunteer Chapter Leaders in local communities with skateparks and support them to deliver the coaching programme.
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Financial review
As shown in Appendix 1, during the reporting period the charity received £2,101.11 income (£6,520 in 2023) and spent £1,927.24 (£3,091.68 in 2023), which resulted in a surplus of £173.87 (£3,428.32 in 2023).
Declaration
The trustees declare that they have approved the trustees’ report above.
Signed on behalf of the charity’s trustees:
Name: Paul Rompani David Hughes Role: Chairman & Secretary Trustee
Date: 20 October 2025
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Appendix 1
The Skateboarding Foundation Accounts
1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024
| 1 January 2024 to 31 December 2024 | |
|---|---|
| Income | |
| Trust & Foundation Grant | £0.00 |
| Individual Donation | £1,101.11 |
| Corporate Donation | £1,000.00 |
| Total Income | £2,101.11 |
| Expenditure | |
| Borough Council Fee | £129.60 |
| Insurance | £394.32 |
| Storage Equipment | £79.00 |
| Transport Hire & Fuel | £180.00 |
| DBS | £13.14 |
| Coaching Fees | £850.00 |
| Web Space & Domain | £147.94 |
| TSF Email | £133.24 |
| Skateboard England | £0.00 |
| Total Expenditure | £1,927.24 |
| Net Surplus/Deficit | £173.87 |
| Funds Carried Forward from previous year | £3,320.96 |
| Funds Carried forward to next year | £3,494.83 |
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