THE centre of Darlington will be transformed this Christmas, when a temporary ice rink is installed.

The portable rink will be constructed in the Market Square on a 300 square metre platform.

Darlington Borough Council has ordered the installation of the rink to attract more people into the town during the festive period, to help boost the business of market traders and town centre shops.

It will be open to the public from December 19 to mid-February and the market will continue to trade two days a week, with stalls arranged around the ice rink.

A council spokesman said: "It will be the centrepiece for the Christmas activities in the town. The Christmas lights will be on and the rink will make the Christmas activities extra special."

Vice-chairman of the Darlington branch of the Market Traders' Federation, Jimmy Maitchell, said his members were happy with the plans, but criticised the council for a lack of consultation.

"As long as it brings people into the town, we think it will be good for business," he said.

"We understand the market stalls will be arranged around the ice rink and the numbers of stalls will remain the same as at the moment.

"We haven't really heard anything from the council's market officers about this. They have not consulted with us over it and we think they have known it would be happening since March. It is the town centre manager that has been keeping us informed."

The council spokesman said it had not been deemed necessary to consult the market traders because there was plenty of room for the stalls and the ice rink in the Market Square.

"We will be consulting with them soon, on how exactly the stalls will fit in around the rink and how they can complement each other," he said.

The council has advertised for an ice rink manager and a part-time skate hire assistant to run the rink.

Anyone interested can contact Darlington JobCentre, in Woodland Road.