Builders Carillion made the presentation to council chairman May Barsby at the event, which was attended by contractors, councillors and officials to celebrate the successful completion of the 18-month project.

The state-of-the-art centre, which will be officially opened by Olympic gold medal athlete Dame Kelly Holmes on 1st November, includes a 25m-lane swimming pool, learner pool, ice rink, two squash courts, a four-court badminton hall and a fitness suite.

Council leader Jason Zadrozny told Chad the centre was a fantastic investment for the whole community.

"It is a massive investment for the area and shows the council is committed to improving facilities for local people," he said.

"The centre offers the best possible facilities and is also environmentally friendly. It will be the hub of the community and be used for many generations to come.

"The location is very accessible and I am confident people and community groups will flock to the centre."

Simon Parker, commercial director at Carillion, said the project had been a major success because of the hard work of everyone involved.

Said Mr Parker: "It gives me great pleasure to hand over the key. This has been a great project and is great credit to the council for their vision, to the architects and to Carillion for putting it all together."