YOUNG skaters, bladers and bikers from Settle are needed to help boost fundraising efforts for the proposed new wheel park.

The group behind the project also wants to find a consultant with wheel park experience to help it develop ideas.

District youth worker Sean Whittle appealed for more youngsters to join in the efforts to find somewhere for Settle teenagers to meet up and make the most of their hobbies.

"I know there are dozens of young people in Settle who use blades and want the wheel park and I want them to get in touch and help us raise some money.

"The project is going forward, but we are in something of a bureaucracy stage," said Mr Whittle, who can be contacted at The Cellar youth club.

Five young people are working hard as the driving force behind the wheel park project, supported by a group of adults including Wendy Dutton, Kevin Harrison and Lesley Barker, Neil Hargreaves from the police and Coun David Heather, who is a member of Craven district and Settle town councils.

The group is currently waiting to meet with officials from Settle United Football Club to discuss the terms of an offer to site a wheel park on land owned by the club at Bridge End.

Mr Whittle said: "We are trying to sort out a meeting to find out exactly what the terms would be with regard to the land, public liability insurance, who would maintain it and so on.

"We are also trying to get hold of an experienced consultant because we've never built a wheel park before and we need advice."

Settle's annual parish meeting heard a decision to site a facility on the football club's land had not been made, and that a site next to the Quaker Meeting House had not been ruled out.

Coun Heather told the meeting the garden next to the meeting house would be adequate for a skate park and would be available if the football club site was not used.

Two residents from Bridge End Cottages had written to Settle Town Council querying whether the football field was the right location, but the council has yet to discuss the letter.

The couple were at Monday's parish meeting and pointed out that six cottages and flats in a converted mill overlooked the site.

Coun Heather said: "It will have to go through planning and all the people in Settle will be able to make their comments in the normal manner and the planning committee will be able to come to a decision. I don't promise it won't be underneath your window, but it will be done properly."

Mr Whittle said the football club site was the prime location under consideration, but any more offers of land would be looked at.

He said: "The club has been wonderful bringing forward this offer."

Settle Town Council has promised up to £5,000 towards the wheel park project and the group is now approaching local businesses to ask for help.