Mayor celebrates opening of UAL’s London College of Fashion and announces joint cultural programming at East Bank – London’s new culture and education powerhouse

• East Bank is delivering the biggest cultural investment in a generation at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park
• UAL’s London College of Fashion and UCL East’s campuses are now open to thousands of students, while Sadler’s Wells East, V&A East Storehouse and Museum and BBC Music Studios are all under construction – supporting thousands of jobs and generating billions for the economy
• The Music Is Black: A British Story will be the inaugural exhibition opening V&A East Museum in 2025 and will inspire the first season of cultural programming involving partners across the park

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has today hailed the transformative impact of East Bank on the capital’s culture and education sectors, as he marked the official opening of UAL’s London College of Fashion and the announcement of a first season of joint cultural programming across East Bank.

The Mayor visited East Bank to see the incredible changes that have taken place at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – as his 2018 vision for a new culture and education powerhouse is being delivered.

BBC, Sadler’s Wells, UAL’s London College of Fashion, University College London (UCL) and the V&A are all building new sites at the Park, thanks to more than £600m investment from the Mayor – the biggest ever cultural investment by the Mayor of London.

The new cultural quarter in the capital is creating more than 2,500 jobs, an estimated £1.5bn for the local economy and will bring an additional 1.5m visitors to the Park and surrounding area each year, as part of an incredible culture and education legacy for London 2012.

Today, UAL’s London College of Fashion has been officially opened, with thousands of the first students on site and the public able to enjoy a programme of exhibitions, showcases and performances. UCL East’s campus is already fully open and delivering education and research opportunities to around 4,000 students.

The theme for the first season of cultural programmes involving partners across the park has also been announced today. It will be inspired by ‘The Music Is Black: A British Story’ an inaugural exhibition at V&A East Museum in 2025 which celebrates the global influence of Black British music. Spanning 1900 to the present day, the exhibition will celebrate 125 years of Black music-making in Britain, from early 20th century pioneers to the groundbreaking music-makers of today.

The BBC, Sadler’s Wells East, UAL London College of Fashion, and UCL East will also join V&A East in bringing the themes of the exhibition to life across Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park – and beyond – with a series of special activities, events, displays and live performances.  

Two new public squares will open later this year on the Park to host outdoor events and showcase new public art, with Sadler’s Wells East due to open in 2024, V&A East Storehouse, V&A East Museum and BBC Music Studios all due to open in 2025.

East Bank is helping to support local young people into employment and during his visit, the Mayor spoke to east Londoners who are working and studying there, including those who have found employment as a result of careers and skills programmes led by the cultural partners.

The Mayor met with young people from the New Talent-Future Leaders programme, which is funded by Westfield East Bank Creative Futures Fund and launched by the Foundation for Future London and Westfield Stratford City, to ensure all Londoners, regardless of background, can have access to apprenticeships, internships, employment, training, and skills development opportunities generated by East Bank.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Five years ago I set out a vision to create a new culture and education powerhouse for our capital, and I’m delighted that East Bank is now roaring into life. Some of our country’s top institutions have joined together to create this new cultural quarter at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park that will inspire generations of young Londoners to come. The opening of UCL East and UAL’s London College of Fashion have been momentous occasions, and, as work continues on the other buildings, today’s announcement of the V&A East Museum’s inaugural exhibition shows how East Bank partners are working together to create a world-leading destination. By providing creative opportunities and jobs to young people, a significant boost to the local economy and by attracting visitors to the Park, East Bank will help us to build a better London for everyone.”

Justine Simons OBE, Deputy Mayor for Culture and the Creative Industries, said: “It’s incredible to see first-hand this fantastic new destination at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park moving from vision into reality. East Bank brings together culture, arts, education and inspiration and this bold investment will transform the lives of so many for generations to come. But legacy doesn’t end when the buildings open, glorious though they are. The real legacy of East Bank will be the world’s future artists, creators, innovators and pioneers who will come from East London.”

Tamsin Ace, Director of East Bank, said: “Over 10 years since the Olympic and Paralympic Games showcased London’s incredible creativity and spirit to the world, it’s amazing to see East Bank begin to awaken in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. I’m delighted that the first season of collaborative programming will be inspired by the V&A’s The Music is Black: A British Story exhibition. This creative programme will reflect the capital in all its diversity, and will be open to everyone who visits, lives and works in East London and beyond.”

James Purnell, President and Vice-Chancellor, University of the Arts London, said: “Collaboration is at the heart of the East Bank project and with the opening of our new campus for London College of Fashion, UAL we are forging partnerships and creating new opportunities and connections with the schools, communities, and industries of East London and beyond. Creativity, the lifeblood of our institution, has the potential to tackle our most pressing challenges and, in doing so, transform lives. Through East Bank, we can reach and engage more people with this vision than ever before.”

Tim Reeve, Deputy Director and Chief Operating Officer, V&A, and Chair of the East Bank Board, said: “East Bank is an extraordinary moment in the evolution of the UK and London’s culture scene – and the V&A is proud to be a part of it, partnering with a truly peerless line-up of creative organisations. Together, we can achieve so much more than just the sum of our parts, working together to shape a new creative campus in the spirit of that created in South Kensington 170 years ago, committed to opportunity, innovation and outstanding creative programming for local communities and audiences everywhere. Our sincere thanks go to The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, for his vision and commitment to East Bank, and for making it a reality.”

Professor Paola Lettieri, Pro-Provost UCL East and Professor of Chemical Engineering at UCL, said: "We are committed to supporting home grown talent in order to maintain our world leading research and teaching. That's why we're investing £5m over the next five years in scholarships exclusively for east Londoners to study with us on our UCL East campus on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. UCL is also leading East Bank's funding for apprenticeship training for local SMEs, incentivising them to support the development and growth of local economies through each of our institutions. Our new campus is at the forefront of innovation in industries ranging from robotics, AI and the potential of electric vehicles through to deepening our understanding of culture, nature and the climate crisis. We can’t wait to welcome more east Londoners through our doors to tackle challenges and change the world together."

Alistair Spalding, Artistic Director and Co-CEO and Britannia Morton, Co-CEO at Sadler’s Wells, said: “It’s fantastic to be part of East Bank, and the exciting collaborations it will lead to with partner organisations. It’s really important to us that our new venue is part of the community in Stratford, and we’re delighted to offer training and employment opportunities to young east Londoners. Sadler’s Wells East will engage new audiences with dance, develop the next generation of dance artists, help drive the regeneration of east London and reinforce the capital’s position as a global powerhouse. We can’t wait to open next year.”

Sam Jackson, Controller, BBC Radio 3, said: “At the core of the BBC’s purpose is to record and broadcast live music across a full range of genres to the widest possible audience. The opening of our BBC Music Studios at East Bank will be a historic moment for us, and will enable us to continue to celebrate and share the best of classical music and pop across the world, as well as delivering for the local community in East London. The East Bank creative quarter is a perfect home for this new chapter, and we’ll continue our extensive and community-focused work within the Olympic boroughs, which includes musician workshops, live concerts and school visits, as well as world-class programming with our inspirational East Bank partners.”

Maria Adebowale Schwarte, CEO of Foundation for Future London, said: “The Foundation for Future London is pleased to support the East Bank partners’ high-quality creative collaborative engagement with local East London communities even before they opened their doors, made possible through the City of London Corporation’s and Westfield Stratford City’s generous support. East Bank partners’ joint commitment to diversity and inclusion and to developing a high-quality talent pool is best demonstrated by the £1.7 million five-year ‘New Talent Future Leaders’ programme, backed by Westfield East Bank Creative Futures Fund, connects people from diverse and under-represented communities to the employment, education and business opportunities generated by East Bank and will benefit 2474 local residents including 1880 young people and 69 organisations.”