The University of East London, Stratford Campus Development has been approved by LB Newham. A vision of UEL striving to become the UK’s leading career-intensive university. The proposals are By UEL, For UEL, and the community.

Led by Metropolitan Workshop, the proposals redevelop a largely vacant brownfield site to provide a development of exceptional architectural quality, including a student village with much-needed student accommodation (650 rooms) and amenities, new teaching, learning, fitness, well-being, and nursery facilities.

A clear deficiency in the area is community access to publicly accessible and quality green space, play, and recreation. Out of the total open space of the project (4948m²) 65% is publicly accessible at all times and 85% is publicly accessible including managed daytime access. The project also places an emphasis on reuse, with all existing hard landscape material on site repurposed in the new proposals.

The UEL Stratford Campus was originally a lush grassland and mix of native forest sandwiched between the River Lee, Marshes, and Epping Forest. Renaturing and nature connectedness is a key component of the site’s landscape concept, providing space for people and nature resulting in a green space coverage across the site of 40%. Furthermore, with a Net uplift of + 50 trees, the overall scheme sees an improvement of 44% Habitat Net Gain + 446% Hedgerow Net Gain.

The proposals include a lush publicly accessible garden courtyard of naturalistic planting and pocket social spaces; a pedestrian informal street with university café spill-out seating, planting, and leisure games; improved walking and cycling permeability between residential existing streets; improved streetscape frontage with new trees, planting, seating and incidental play; community growing areas; and communal social space on podium terraces.

We can’t wait to see this delivered and full of life!