As part of the plan two London universities will create new campuses on the site.

University College London will create a second campus, UCL East, which the institution says will be a ¡°beacon of how universities should work for decades to come¡±.

The University of the Arts London, meanwhile, will create a research and education hub that will bring together staff and students from one of its colleges for the first time in its history.

Government funding for the project has been awarded as part of the National Infrastructure Plan. The Victoria and Albert Museum and Sadler¡¯s Wells Theatre will also have a presence at the East London site.

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UCL has committed up to ?0 million for the first phase of UCL East, which is expected to open in 2018. The 50,000 sq m space will include the university¡¯s first design school, a university museum of the future, a centre for experimental engineering and a technology centre with incubators housing research and businesses.

Living space for undergraduates, research students and academic staff in the early stages of their careers will also be created.

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Stephen Caddick, UCL vice-provost (enterprise and London), said: ¡°Our new site will be a beacon of how universities should work in decades to come ¨C outward-looking, connected to the local community and providing facilities to businesses to work on site to bring new discoveries and inventions out of the lab and into the marketplace.¡±

Meanwhile, UAL¡¯s 32,000 sq m campus on the Stratford waterfront will bring together the 6,500 students and staff of the London College of Fashion for the first time in its 100-year history. It will also house two research centres focusing on sustainability and innovation in the fashion industry and provide access to advanced fashion technology, as well as business incubators and public exhibitions.

Nigel Carrington, vice-chancellor of the UAL, 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.¡±

holly.else@tesglobal.com