Design consultancy services

Tender description

This commission is required by Lee Valley Regional Park Authority to develop a new twin pad ice centre on the site of its existing ice centre on Lea Bridge Road, Leyton. Although this commission will involve delivering stages 0-7 of the RIBA plan of work it is intended that there will be a break after completion of Stage 2. This is designed to allow for consideration of options on the capital funding package and to follow due planning processes. This commission is required by Lee Valley Regional Park Authority to develop a new twin pad ice centre on the site of its existing ice centre on Lea Bridge Road, Leyton. Although this commission will involve delivering stages 0-7 of the RIBA plan of work it is intended that there will be a break after completion of Stage 2. This is designed to allow for consideration of options on the capital funding package and to follow due planning processes. In advance of this work the Authority has been working closely with the LB Waltham Forest to support their work in the regeneration of the wider area. In developing these studies the Authority recognises the dynamic role of the area which is regarded as a key gateway to the Lee Valley Regional Park. The area is well connected by public transport linking the area to key transport hubs. This has been further enhanced by the reopening of the Lea Bridge station in May 2016. The wider Leabridge area forms part of the Leabridge/Leyton Housing Zone designated by the GLA in 2015 with an anticipated 2 500 new homes being developed across the Housing Zone over the next 5-10 years with a new centre planned around the reopened station at Leabridge. LB Waltham Forest have commissioned a masterplan to manage and effectively place-shape this anticipated growth and the new Ice Centre will need to be carefully knitted into the opportunities for the wider area. The offers a variety of leisure amenities — there are more than 350 000 visits a year to Lee Valley Ice Centre, 150 000 to Lee Valley Riding Centre and 1 000 000 to the area's award winning green spaces. This includes Walthamstow Marshes, a remnant of the original water meadows that once covered much of the Lee Valley, and the Water-Works Centre nature reserve and Middlesex Filter beds, a wonderful wildlife haven with significant historical interest. Our planned investment in a new, expanded state of the art ice centre on the site of the existing venue will complement the Councils regeneration programme for the area.