Government agrees £141m for Stratford, including UAL’s new campus for London College of Fashion

December 3, 2014

The Government has today committed £141m to the new education and cultural district on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. This will enable UAL’s new campus for London College of Fashion to go ahead into full planning.

The news was confirmed in the Government’s National Infrastructure Plan and will help deliver the Olympicopolis vision. This will create a world class education and cultural district on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park bringing together outstanding organisations to showcase exceptional art, dance, history, craft, science, technology and cutting edge design.

Vice-Chancellor of University of the Arts London, Nigel Carrington, said: “Research on global challenges is increasingly beginning to emerge from the borders of art and science. This new creative approach is physically expressed in the university and cultural quarter at Stratford. The partnership between these four world-class institutions will create radical research, and lead to exciting new technology and fashion businesses in this part of London.” UAL is one of the biggest investors in the quarter, alongside University College London.

UAL’s new campus will be on Stratford Waterfront opposite the Aquatics Centre. The 32,000m2 site will create a research and education hub for the global fashion industry, near the traditional heart of the East End fashion trade. It will bring together London College of Fashion’s 6,500 students and staff for the first time in the college’s 100 year history.

The new campus will include two major research centres focusing on sustainability and innovation in the fashion industry. It will provide widespread access to advanced fashion technology, business incubators, and a changing programme of public exhibitions. The Waterfront site will also house new locations for the Victoria and Albert Museum and Sadler’s Wells. UCL will create a new university campus to the south of the ArcelorMittal Orbit. The scheme is expected to deliver 3,000 jobs, 1.5 million additional visitors and £2.8 billion of economic value to Stratford and the surrounding area.