The £30m centre in Leyton, which is due to open in Winter 2022, will feature two ice rinks side by side as well as a gym, café, dance studio and community spaces.

The centre is being built and funded by Lee Valley Regional Park Authority, which is responsible for the 26 mile long, 10,000 acre Lee Valley Regional Park, with £1m of support from the London Borough of Waltham Forest.

It replaces the old Lee Valley Ice Centre on the same site, which opened in 1984 and was used by 279,000 people a year before it closed for redevelopment last year. The new rinks will be even larger doubling the capacity to attract over 500,000 people a year.

Designed by FaulknerBrowns Architects and being delivered by Buckingham Group Contracting Ltd and Wrenbridge, the new venue is less than two miles from Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, continuing London’s Olympic legacy by using many of the same principles of the three London 2012 venues which Lee Valley Regional Park Authority helped design and now owns. It is expected to boost the local economy by £1.5m annually and transform the surrounding landscape and increase wildlife by replacing areas largely devoid of ecological value with significant native planting.

“Our ambition is for an inspirational venue bringing world class facilities to communities in east London and across the region, aiding physical and mental wellbeing. We see it as a new community hub with programmes for schools, under-represented groups and a host of community organisations. We want this to be a place for everyone to enjoy - from committed skaters to people who meet up in the cafe before exploring the fantastic surrounding green spaces,” said Shaun Dawson, chief executive of LVRPA.