Riders have voiced frustration after informal bike jumps built by BMX riders at Kone Vale, a wooded site at Ballingdon on the edge of Sudbury, Suffolk, were removed by the landowner in mid-August.

Photo by Julia Fiander on Unsplash (generic woodland)

Babergh District Council, which owns the land, confirmed it took the action over safety concerns. A council spokesperson said it had received complaints about jumps built across paths, disturbed forest school log circles, and evidence of fires being lit in the woods. Only the ramps that crossed a path have been removed so far, with other jumps left in place, and the council has asked that no further jumps or new tracks be built.

Abigail Ford, whose teenage sons ride regularly at Kone Vale, told the Suffolk Free Press that the council had removed the jumps without any discussion with the young people who built them. Parents, including Ford, have argued that the riders were wrongly linked to unrelated anti-social behaviour in the woods, and that the jumps had been built and used safely by local families for years.

Last week, Ford and other community members met Richard Godfrey, Babergh's communities officer for anti-social behaviour, to discuss the situation. She described the meeting as positive, saying the council had committed to exploring whether a more suitable, purpose-built location for BMX riding could be found in the Sudbury area, and what support it might be able to offer.

No timescale or site has been confirmed. iBikeRide will follow the story if a formal BMX facility for the Sudbury area actually moves forward.