Fierce opposition is growing against plans to construct a temporary ice rink on Streatham Common, that campaigners say could be illegal.

Community groups are campaigning against Lambeth Council and Tesco’s proposal to build the Olympic sized rink on the metropolitan land next year.

The temporary rink is needed to provide “continuity of ice” in revised plans agreed by Tesco and the council for the Streatham Hub development.

Original plans that involved not closing the current rink until the new one was built were scrapped by Tesco - which now wants to build a 50 per cent bigger store - to make the development more profitable. It said a slump in the housing market made the original scheme untennable.

But Sustainable Streatham, Friends of Streatham Common (Fosc), and heritage group the Streatham Society, all object to the football pitch sized temporary facility - including a car park - going on metropolitan land.

A petition started at the Streatham Kite festival on Saturday – which took place where the rink is likely to be placed – has already gained some 300 signatures.

Fears exist that Tesco could default on the agreement to build the leisure facility once the supermarket is built.

Fosc also believe temporary structures on Streatham Common could prove to be illegal.

The Metropolitan Commons (1869) Amendment Act states only buildings for maintenance purposes should be constructed on Streatham Common.

Fosc vice chair Peter Newmark said: “It’s common land and should not be treated in this way. We have serious concerns about how long the structure could stay, and the long term affect it could have on the environment there.”

Streatham Society chair Brian Bloice said the plan represented the “desecration of Streatham Common”.

Council leader Steve Reed said a full consultation would take place on the plans before any decision was made, but currently no alternative sites were known of in Streatham, where it was essential for the temporary rink to stay.

He said a legal agreement would be put in place as part of planning to stipulate the supermarket could not open before the ice rink and leisure centre.