A PROFESSIONAL-standard skate ramp has been installed at Victoria Park in the hope of reducing noise.

People living nearby had complained about the noise created by skaters using the old ramp.

The new ramp has a special resin surface, which Malvern Town Council hopes will solve the problem.

Nico van Loenen, of Victoria Park Road, said it was too early to say whether the new ramp was an improvement.

"It's not until the weather warms up and people want to have their windows open in the evening that we will be able to tell," he said.

But Martin Cale, another resident, said: "It's not just the ramp, it's the multi-sports area where they skate and where they bounce balls for hours at a time. I can't sit out in my conservatory because of the noise.

"I wouldn't be happy unless they took it all away, but that's not going to happen."

The new ramp was designed and installed by Playworld Systems of Ledbury, using a design by Woodward Ramps and Rails, an American ramp-maker which is highly regarded in the skating world. Playworld is the British agent for Woodward.

Woodward ramps will be used at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, where skateboarding, in-line skating and BMX biking will be demonstration sports.

The new ramp is part of a series of improvements at Victoria Park, which will include new fencing and improved dug-outs around the football pitches.

Public toilets in the park have just been reopened, following a £14,500 refit.