East Bank is unique, its model doesn’t have to be
East Bank’s first joint, free public festival in Summer 2026, The Music is Black Festival (Image credit: Rahil Verma)
Tamsin Ace, Director
| East Bank
Investing in cultural and creative collaboration is a route to renewal
This article has been funded by Sadler’s Wells; London College of Fashion, UAL; and University College London on behalf of East Bank
East Bank is unique. Situated at the heart of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, the UK’s newest cultural and education quarter is an experiment in creative collaboration which is already having an effect. It is contributing 2,500 jobs and £1.5bn for the local economy and bringing an additional 1.5 million visitors to the park and four local Growth Boroughs each year; offering an evolving model of inclusive growth for local economies and communities across the UK.
What sets East Bank apart is the collaboration between government and world-leading cultural institutions, and between those global institutions and local communities. This enables a creative environment where researchers and students can in turn collaborate with dancers, designers, broadcasters and community groups to solve shared problems.
London 2012 inspired investment at a scale and ambition not matched since: £600m from City Hall enabling a £1.1bn project in development with additional support from central government to the local economy. This enabled five complementary organisations – BBC Music Studios; London College of Fashion, UAL; Sadler’s Wells; University College London (UCL); and the V&A – to commit to new homes and a new association with each other.
Shared trust between government and cultural institutions in taking this leap together has made tangible impact today, not just in terms of the statistics above but in the vibrancy of east London itself.
A commitment to the local area was as vital to East Bank’s founding as the Olympics. It did not arrive on empty ground; East Bank is part of a much longer story of making and remaking, building on local relationships developed over time. With stark challenges to social cohesion across the UK and disillusion especially felt by the young, an investment in one of the youngest and most diverse areas of the country needed to deliver for east London.
And deliver it has.
Building on more than 100 years of shaping lives through fashion, London College of Fashion, UAL's new state-of-the-art facilities are nurturing pioneering creative talent and opening up opportunities for connection.
The UCL East campus is accelerating breakthroughs in robotics, AI, ecology, sustainable cities, green manufacturing, decarbonised transport, assistive technologies, fair finance, and global health.
Sadler's Wells East is home to world-class dance, artist development, a new choreographic school and free participation. For the first time in the UK, young people can study a Level 3 qualification in Hip-Hop theatre through Academy Breakin’ Convention.
V&A East Storehouse and Museum provide unprecedented access to collections and ideas, demonstrating creativity's power to drive change. BBC Music Studios will perform, record and broadcast live music across a full range of genres to the widest possible audiences.
With London's cultural and creative industries contributing £64bn to the UK economy each year, the benefits from this public investment are far reaching.
Exciting new cross-collaborations are emerging, particularly through East Bank’s work with young people. East Ed, established by London Legacy Development Corporation, supports teachers, inspires young people and creates pathways into creative careers. Over 9,000 young people have taken part in East Summer School and East Careers Week, expanding access to industry, building skills and confidence across courses from fashion design to engineering and skateboarding. The Good Growth Hub’s STEP programme also offers paid traineeships with East Bank partners.
The most exciting test of East Bank’s collaborative potential is still under way. The Music is Black Festival welcomed 12,000 people for a free celebration of sound, culture and community in its first weekend alone. Developed in dialogue with prominent Black British musicians and academics, it offers a culturally significant programme free to the public.
The inspiration of East Bank’s founding, its model of creative collaboration and its promise to local people is a route to renewal anywhere. Our door is open and, as it says in neon over the entrance to Sadler’s Wells East, you are welcome.
Find out more by visiting www.queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk/east-bank
