GSUK Christmas Market & Skate Jam Saturday 4th December

Join us for a full day of Christmas cheer in Sheffield on Saturday 4th December for our Skate & Make Christmas market and skate jam!!

We will be kicking off the morning with our Christmas market from 11am – come and grab yourself and your loved ones some gifts whilst supporting small, skater owned businesses!

We’ll have stalls from makers, bakers, crafters and artists, as well as some discount skate gear, brand new @girlskateuk merch and of course the fabulous wares from @houseskatepark shop until 4pm

Our much loved Christmas skate jam will be BACK from 5pm – 9pm, come down and have a skate, get yourself a couple of raffle tickets and have a jolly good time with some pals!

As always, everyone is invited to our official skate jams! Whilst we have pushed and will continue to push for dedicated spaces for female, trans, non binary and gender non conforming skaters, we love to open up our events to EVERY BODY and love even more to witness the shift in dynamics for female dominated skateboard events 💪

Hope to see you guys there!

’Synthesize Me’ by Vans Europe

Synthesize Me is a joyous ode to skateboarding in Marseille, showcasing just how good the spots and womens’ skateboarding in Europe is right now!

Featuring our good friend and London born skateboarder Helena Long, alongside Jeanne Duval, Lisa Jacob, Alix Malnati, Madeleine Larcheron, Romane Panossian, Louisa Menke, Amanda Perez and Miriam Marino.

X GAMES WOMENS STREET & PARK FOOTAGE / RESULTS : Summer 2021

Womes Street Medal Runs
Women’s Park Medal Runs
RankName
1Leticia Bufoni
2Samarria Brevard
3Poe Pinson
4Jenn Soto
5Isabelly Avila
6Virginia Fortes
7Fabiana Delfino
8Monica Torres
9Nika Washington
Women’s street results summer 2021
RankName
1Sky Brown
2Mami Tezuka
3Bryce Wettstein
4Minna Stess
5Jordan Santana
6Poppy Olsen
7Kihana Ogawa
8Grace Marhoefer
9Nora Vasconcellos
Women’s results summer 2021 Park

And below you can watch Leticia Bufoni and Sky Brown take their golds in Street and Park respectively!

Wren: Experiences of a Trans Skateboarder

Words by Wren


My name is Wren and I’m a trans skater.

I’d skated for around 10 years before I came out. 
When I did, not only did half of my friends disown me, but I also started receiving abuse online from them and also from total strangers too.

It got so bad I ended up quitting skating for a while as every time I posted a clip I was receiving abusive messages. Telling me I didn’t belong in skating, no one wants to see it, and other things I won’t repeat… 

Skating is my whole life, I have no idea what to do with myself without it. It was not a decision I made lightly at all, but I can’t explain how heartbreaking it is to suddenly be unwelcome and hated in the thing you’ve dedicated your whole life to. 

The queer skate community in the U.K. is relatively small and we still have a lot of work to do to normalise lgbtqia+ within skating in this country. 
Even small things like casual homophobic comments you hear at the skatepark are enough to deter you from coming out… 

I feel like people seeing things like the experiences that I went through will stop them from coming out too, maybe if we can help skating feel more inclusive and understanding people will feel safer and better supported to come out and the lgbtqia scene will grow! 

I actually started an online platform called Angles, set up to focus on queer and female skaters/artists, but I closed it down temporarily whilst I focused on my transition fully. 

Being a trans skater adds an extra level of difficulty/alienation as you don’t feel comfortable around men and you also don’t feel welcome at women’s only events either. 
I feel like queer acceptance in this country is very much at face value with a lot of people within skating, but when they are actually faced with it or have their dm’s to hide behind, sadly it’s a whole different story.. 

I honestly long for a change within UK skateboarding and want it to be more accepting and understanding of people.
At the end of the day all the circumstantial stuff doesn’t matter. You skate, I skate, we should support and love each other!

I won’t stop working towards that. 


Do you have a story or some words to share? We would love to hear from you!

Use the hashtag #SKATEWITHPRIDE to show your support for our LGBTQIA skateboarders 🏳️‍⚧️

In Womxn We Trust


‘In Womxn We Trust’ is an underground music show that aims to highlight womxn in creative industries. This PRIDE month Drum & Bass DJ, Amy B interviewed Cassie and Amelia, two skateboarders from the LGBTQIA+ community, on Subtle Radio. They shared their experiences on being queer in skateboarding and how they finally found a safe space where they were free to be themselves.

The show is due to be broadcast on Monday 21st June 4-5pm. 

Cassie said: “You feel free to be yourself, which is so important as a queer person, because some environments can be quite hostile and you start thinking: ‘should I come out, should I not come out’, but immediately with skateboarding, for me, I felt I could definitely be myself here. 

“I can dress how I want to dress, skate how I want to skate, talk how I want to talk and there’s nobody telling me that I have to be a certain way, which is so refreshing.”

“It’s about you as a person having fun.”

Amelia said: “I love being queer and I love skateboarding and so far it has been such a positive experience for me, which is so nice. 

In other situations like a workplace environment or where you’re meeting a large group of people, you think: ‘I’m going to have to come out to them at some point and I should probably do it as soon as possible’, but with skateboarding, it never even crossed my mind. In this community I am a skateboarder and that is all that matters.” 

Tune in to listen to Cassie and Amelia share their personal journeys, and also some very important advice about how we can support and encourage more members of the LGBTQIA+ community to skateboard.

The show is due to be broadcast on Monday 21st June 4-5pm. 

Amy B – @amyb_dnb // Cassie – @cas.bond // Amelia – @ameliabugskates // Subtle Radio – @subtleradio

More info about Subtle Radio can be found at www.subtleradio.com

FREE SKATE LESSONS IN SHEFFIELD FOR GO SKATE DAY

Join us for Go Skateboarding Day at the Girl Skate UK HQ!


Go Skateboarding Day 2021 is almost upon us! It was heartbreaking not to be able to host our usual events last year, so for this Go Skate Day we are opening up our private mini ramp in the GSUK HQ for some free skateboard lessons!

We are welcoming EVERYONE – no matter your age, gender or ability – to try out a 45 minute taster skateboard lesson, and learn a bit about what we do at Girl Skate UK!

You will receive tuition from a qualified female coach with 12 years at a private skate ramp in Sheffield. There will be treats and refreshments, alongside a pop up stall of discounted GSUK merch!

Maximum skaters per session is 3. Equipment can be provided but is limited, please email us at hello@girlskateuk.com if you would like to borrow a skateboard and pads for your lesson.

You can book your place here!

Please email us at hello@girlskateuk.com if you have any more questions about the day. We would LOVE for you to join us!

Please note:

  • Lessons are for 45 minutes but please allow yourself a total of one hour. This is because there is a short walk from the site gate to the ramp.
  • Sessions are free but please be aware that we are an outdoor location so will not be able to go ahead if it rains, in which instance you will be notified as soon as the decision is made.
  • Full address will be sent first thing Monday morning. If you need to organise travel and would like it sooner, please get in touch at hello@girlskateuk.com
  • Parents bringing children will need to wait at the gate with them until we arrive to let them in. Spectators are unfortunately not permitted.