By Lucy Caulkett-
Sadiq Khan, the Mayor of London, plans to invest £385 million in a new cultural quarter being developed in east London.
The £1.1 billion project, known as East Bank, will be situated in the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in Stratford East London. The hugely ambitious plan is set to accommodate a mid scale dance theatre for Sadler’s Wells , and a campus for the University of the Arts London, as well as an east London venue for the Victoria and Albert museum. A new University College London (UCL) campus home to 4,000 students will be a major boost to University graduates and aspiring graduates.
Sadler’s Wells artistic director Alistair Spalding said the new theatre would “change how dance artists are prepared for the making process and support the course of creation in a way that does not currently exist, particularly for artists in their early careers”.
BBC
The BBC is included in the project the project, with its Symphony Orchestra and Chorus making East Bank their home. The BBC Concert Orchestra is also set to have a substantial presence at East Bank, with studios built to host recording sessions and live performances across all genres.
The BBC Proms will also be brought to the area, providing performances and opportunities for young people from east London to participate in choirs and ensembles. The government has also confirmed plans to support the project with a £151 million grant. Khan also pledged that at least 50% of new homes across the remaining development sites on the park – Stratford Waterfront, Pudding Mill and Rick Roberts Way – will be affordable.
Khan described the project as “a new powerhouse of culture, education, innovation and growth”.He said: “Great cities are defined by their ambition as much as their achievements, and East Bank is the most ambitious new project of its kind for decades.
“I have made culture, innovation and growth a top priority, and as London’s centre of gravity extends east, I’m delighted that we’re placing culture and education at the heart of this development and the Olympic legacy.”