Skaters heartbroken as 'second home' ice rink in Cannock set to close

More than 3,000 people have signed a petition to save Planet Ice Cannock, in the old Silver Blades site at Lakeside Plaza on Walkmill Lane, which is set to close down on March 27.

It has led to an outpouring of support with several sharing their memories of the site as they called for something to be done after the "devastating" news.

But there is some hope left after landlords Ribston told the Express & Star they were "not opposed" to negotiating an agreement with the ice rink firm.

Lucy Taylor, who lives in Cheslyn Hay and set up the petition, said: "I've got two boys who both skate there and it's a family thing for me, I've got a cousin who skates and another who plays hockey there.

"We can be there five or six nights in a normal week – we've formed a nice little family there, we're a community there and it was such a shame to see it could close because our closest one is about an hour away.

"(The petition) is around 3,000 signatures now and it's signed by people across the country, pretty much. We've had people from ice rinks across the country contacting us and the community spirit has been really good.

"My two boys are figure skaters and they are three and seven. There's so many different classes there – my youngest is three so he does little penguin classes and will not be able to do things like that if we need to potentially travel an hour.

"It's so upsetting for so many kids. There's some kids who catch the bus and they won't be able to go elsewhere. We've thought about getting a fundraiser going – if they are 100 per cent closing – for a minibus for those kids (to take them to other rinks)."

Planet Ice has its headquarters in Lichfield and has 15 branches across the country including in Coventry, Solihull and Uttoxeter.

Keen skaters will be forced to travel to Telford, Solihull or Tamworth if the Cannock site closes.

Lucy Ratcliffe, who has been skating at the ice rink since she was an eight-year-old, said the closure was "devastating" and called for something to be done to ensure Cannock had an ice rink.

The 22-year-old, who lives in Calf Heath near Cannock, said: "It's been like my second home since I was eight and it's just devastating. We did have our own little club there, which has been off and on – the Cannock Figure Skating Club – but we see ourselves as a big family really.

"We all had different teams and coaches and staff and my coach was Tash Sennell and she's been like a second mum to me. When I was younger, I was training six days a week before and after school – and sometimes during school too.

"It's one of those things we'd really like to be able to offer to the young people in the area. The nearest one is an independent venue in Telford and the other Planet Ice rink is 45 minutes away at Solihull.

"We're trying to get Planet Ice to find another space in the area that we can offer to a curling club, a hockey club and generate enough revenue to keep it going. It gives young people a focus and passion and it's something people can care about, which is important especially how the world is with Covid-19.

"I'm 22 now – I'm old in skating terms – but if I'm having a bad day I know I can go there. It's good for people's mental health, too, because if people get bullied at school, they've got a place they can go to. It's about that social aspect of it too.

"I probably wouldn't have been able to deal with (poor mental health) as well as I have done if I didn't have skating or the people at the rink. We just want to do everything we can to get Planet Ice to get a new site, or try to raise some serious money and get it ourselves.

"The only people who have a chance of representing Great Britain are from Sheffield and not everyone has the opportunity to go there and do that, so it's good to have a rink around here. I never really got the chance to do all that so I'm hoping the next generation of kids will be able to do that."