A new twin pad ice centre in east London moves closer
Millions of people have skated at Lee Valley Ice Centre since it opened 36 years ago. Now the organisation behind it has ambitious plans to build south east England’s first twin pad with two Olympic sized rinks. They need your help to show what this amazing new centre could bring. Please take a moment to drop an email to help them get planning permission.
Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, which owns and runs Lee Valley Ice Centre, has asked the London Borough of Waltham Forest in east London for planning permission for this stunning new ultra-modern centre. Plans have been evolving since 2016 and have been shaped by skaters, hockey players and coaches. Two Olympic sized ice pads, a gym, dance studio and other spaces would allow a whole host of additional sporting activities and more of what’s currently on offer to take place including ice dance, ice hockey, curling and speed skating.
The Authority has a track record of delivering high quality, well used sporting venues, and has put forward a strong case, but approval is not guaranteed. The existing ice centre is a hugely popular sporting and community asset especially among young people, women and girls, and people from BAME backgrounds. However, after 36-years of non-stop use, Lee Valley Ice Centre is reaching the end of its operational life and can’t meet increasing demand.
As members of the ice-skating community, you can help secure planning permission by emailing the London Borough of Waltham Forest, saying why you think this new centre should go ahead. Each response really counts.
Please email: dmconsultations@walthamforest.gov.uk, with your name, quoting the application ID 194162. Please use your own words and really get across what a new Lee Valley Ice Centre would mean to you, the skating world and young people. You could include the bullets below, but please don’t feel that this is a list you must follow:
I am writing to you as a [skater /coach / parent] who believes that continued and improved skating facilities in east London are essential and I would like to express my support for the plans to replace Lee Valley Ice Centre, which is a vital sporting and community venue.
Having a new ice centre in London would allow ice skaters to… [insert a couple of lines on what a new ice centre means for you and your sport].
Having great local ice sports facilities allows young skaters to reap the benefits of the sport such as…
Ice sports have been a huge benefit to me personally, for example [include personal story about how ice sports have benefitted you]
For more information about the exciting plans for Lee Valley Ice Centre, please visit icecentreredevelopment.com
CGI of the new venue
CGI of one of the two Olympic sized pads