A groundbreaking cultural development has been launched at the new University College London East and Stratford Waterfront sites at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London.

The £1.1 billion scheme, East Bank, will bring together a new campus for UCL, BBC recording studios, campus for UAL's London College of Fashion, a mid-scale dance theatre for Sadler's Wells, and two new V&A sites – a museum at Stratford Waterfront including a partnership with the Smithsonian Institution, and a collection and research centre at Here East.

A ceremony was held at the UCL East Campus site yesterday, 03 July, to celebrate the start of construction.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, who broke ground on the project, said: "Culture and creativity has shaped our city and made us who we are – the capital is overflowing with talent and imagination and it is what makes London the greatest city in the world.


"That is why I am delighted to be in the Olympic Park breaking ground for the most ambitious cultural development in decades. East Bank will inspire a whole new generation of Londoners to pursue their creative ambitions. This new creative cluster will bring together world-leading cultural and educational institutions to give young Londoners the chance to explore career opportunities, create jobs for local people and provide an economic boost for the capital."


Mace is working with the London Legacy Development Corporation as the project management partner for the delivery of the Stratford Waterfront site and with UCL as main contractor for the Marshgate building of UCL East. 

The project will be the most significant single investment in London's culture since the legacy of the 1851 Great Exhibition.

It is expected to bring more than 10,000 students to the site, delivering 2,500 jobs and a £1.5 billion boost to the economy.


A £10m funding package from Westfield Stratford City was also announced, which will help to deliver careers coaching, mentoring, learning opportunities, internships and apprenticeships as well as support for entrepreneurs and new business start-ups in the arts, culture and placemaking industries.


The construction programme will see more than 1,500 people working on site, at least 30 per cent of whom will be local residents, and more than 125 apprentices will be working on the site every year.


The £1.1bn scheme is receiving £385m funding from the Mayor of London and £151m funding from the Government.

Work will be completed in phases with Sadler's Wells, UCL and UAL's London College of Fashion opening their buildings first in 2022, and then BBC and the V&A (including its partnership with the Smithsonian Institution) in 2023, along with UCL's second building on their UCL East campus.  


(CM/JG)