New ice rink to open in Cheltenham - just in time for Christmas

An ice rink will be coming to Cheltenham this Christmas after it was given the go-ahead by planners this week.

Cheltenham Borough Council leaders committed last month to spending more than £335,000 to bring an ice rink to the town during the festive period.

Now the proposals by Marketing Cheltenham to install it in Imperial Gardens have been granted planning permission.

The ice rink will be located in the south west quadrant of Imperial Gardens with the rest of the gardens remaining open to the public.

Belinda Hunt, operations manager at Cheltenham Business Improvement District (BID), told the council's planning committee it is more important than ever to put on a Christmas to remember.

She said the ice rink will help put the town at the top of the list of places to visit in the country this Christmas.

“The ice rink, coupled with the extended markets, free street entertainment throughout the festive shopping period, and the enhanced Christmas lights would provide an offering which would go beyond those of the likes of Gloucester, Worcester and Bristol,” she said.

“As Cheltenham works together to recover from the coronavirus pandemic, it’s more important than ever that we put on a Christmas to remember to attract both locals and people from further afield to our town.

“We believe that by putting an ice rink in Imperial Gardens this can be achieved.

“With its proximity to the main shopping and parking areas of the town this location would be the main focal point of the seasonal festivities.

“It would help to link areas of the town frequented by different demographics, bringing the community together.”

She also said the proposals have the full support of many of the businesses which are part of the BID.

Councillor Bernie Fisher (Lib Dem, Swindon Village) said it was a great idea and it was nice to hear that Cheltenham would be rivalling Bath, Bristol, Cardiff.

“We are a town, they are all cities but we punch above our weight and so we should,” he said.

The committee approved the plans by eight votes with one abstention.

Credit: Carmelo Garcia, Local Democracy Reporter.