Check out these cute new arrivals at Lee Valley Park Farms. Two meerkats and 23 ex-battery hens are now settling into their new home on the farm.

The hens arrived from the British Hen Welfare Trust and are recovering with the help of warm knitted jumpers, made for them by members of the public.

Why not take a closer look at the new arrivals by visiting Lee Valley Park Farms this weekend?

Lee Valley Park Farms. Open daily, 10am-5pm until 31 Oct 2011

Fancy trying out an Olympic sports venue before London 2012? Lee Valley White Water Centre, which will host the canoe slalom events in 2012, is the only Olympic venue that will be open for public use before the games.

The centre was officially unveiled yesterday by the Princess Royal, and tickets are now on sale. When the course opens in April, you’ll be able to have a go at rafting and canoeing before the Olympic competitors arrive.

You might even find yourself canoeing alongside one of Britain’s top athletes: Skilled guides including Paskell Blackwell, captain of the Men’s Senior GB rafting team, will be on hand to help people through the rapids.

For more info and tickets visit www.gowhitewater.co.uk. Please note this facility will be closed to the public from 16 October 2011 until 2013

The London 2012 Olympic Park is really starting to take shape, and with just over two years to go until the Games we’re getting really excited! These photos taken in May show the latest progress at the Olympic Park.

The 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games are set to transform this part of East London with sporting venues, new transport networks and the construction of the UK’s largest urban park for more than a century.

As you can see the Olympic Stadium is progressing well. It has now reached its full height of 60m, with the roof and 14 lighting towers resting on 2,500 tonnes of steel tubing recycled from old gas pipelines.

The distinctive wave-shaped roof of the Aquatics centre weighs 2,800 tonnes, spans 160m and has a length of 120m. The roof structure is now in place and the centre is due to be completed midway through next year.

The Pringle-shaped VeloPark needed 2,500 sections of steelwork for its structure with a difference of 12m in height between the lowest and highest points. It looks so good that once you see it you’ll want to go back for more!

The structure of the IBC (International Broadcast Centre) /MPC (Main Press Centre) was completed in September after just ten weeks of construction. The 4,500 tonne structure features a 12,000 sq m catering village that will dish up 50,000 meals during the Games.

What do you think of these latest photos?

British cycling champ Ed Clancy was on site recently to witness an important building stage in the London 2012 Olympic Velodrome.

Clancy, who became the new World Champion in the Omnium event at the Track Cycling World Championships last month, watched as the huge roof of the Velodrome was lifted into place. The Velodrome’s distinctive double-curved roof rises in height by 12 metres from the shallowest point to the highest part of the structure, helping form its shape, which has been designed to reflect the geometry of the cycling track.

The 6,000 seat venue, located in Olympic Park in the Lee Valley, will host the Olympic and Paralympic track cycling events in 2012. After the Games, the Velodrome will be used by top athletes as well as the local community. The building will include a café, bike hire and cycle workshop facilities.

Clancy also won Gold at the 2008 Beijing Games as part of the record-breaking team pursuit team. He commented: “Becoming World Champion was an amazing experience and a reminder of the excitement of racing at a major championship so it was great to see the Olympic Park Velodrome where I hope to compete on home soil in 2012. The Velodrome is already shaping up to be a fantastic venue and I can’t wait to come back here to help Team GB continue our Gold rush in 2012.”

With the Velodrome roof in place, work will begin shortly to cover the roof and install the outer timber cladding of the venue. The Velodrome structure is due to be watertight by the summer, allowing work to install the timber cycling track to begin in the Autumn. The venue is due to be completed in early 2011. Read more about London 2012 venues here.

January is a tough month. The fun and feasting is over, we’re all back at work and the detox dullness has begun to bite. Meanwhile, while The Big Freeze means most are heartily sick of cold things, this morning I actively sought the ice, attending a lesson at Somerset House Skate School.

The school is held on the Somerset House Ice Rink on weekdays from 8.30-9.30am for adults, and there’s also Penguin Club, which teaches kids how to skate.

The skate school class consisted of about 15 (adult) pupils, who were split into two groups – absolute beginners and slightly more advanced. After booting up (skate hire is included), we stepped out onto the rink.

I was nervous – I’ve skated before but not often and it’s been a while. I started with the beginners, clutching the barrier, but soon got the hang of it enough to glide across, triumphant, to join the advanced group. Here we practiced the basics of skating forward and backwards, as well as stopping, crouching down, skating on one leg, sharp turns and even a little jump!

My instructor, Lucy, was friendly, helpful and calm. Skating backwards is something I thought I’d never even attempt, but I managed it, albeit with a helping hand from Lucy. My poor balance meant the one-legged glide, while less scary, was a lot more difficult and, oddly, the hardest bit is stopping.

The thing is, though, once you get going, you don’t want to stop because skating is such fun. Throw in the gorgeous backdrop of London’s Somerset House and a small group of friendly people that ensures you’ve got room to move and it’s a lovely start to a frosty morning. I’d recommend this for anyone who’s a bit nervous on the ice or who wants to learn new moves and brush up their technique. I’m sure, like me, you won’t be able to stop either!

Somerset House Ice Rink is open until late January and there are still a few places available at Skate School. Tickets are also available for the afternoon and evening sessions, including late skates accompanied by a DJ.

Other London ice rinks open now include Canary Wharf, Broadgate and the Natural History Museum. Plus there’s permanent ice rinks at the Lee Valley Ice Centre, Alexandra Palace and Queensway Ice & Bowl.