UCL East Marshgate

Hufton+Crow

The first part of University College London’s new campus in East London, Marshgate is designed to encourage cross-disciplinary learning, thinking and research.

Zero Carbon London

Marshgate is a new breed of academic building at the heart of the UCL East Campus – the largest single expansion of University College London since its foundation nearly 200 years ago.

The vision for Marshgate is based on the recognition that the answers to the global challenges facing our planet lie less within traditional disciplines than in the interaction between them. To enable new interdisciplinary ways of working, the design focussed on highly flexible spaces that encourage collaboration between teaching, research, academia and the public.

This was an ambitious and challenging brief, not least because no existing UCL faculty was to be based at Marshgate. Instead, the building was to house entirely new cross-disciplinary courses along with multi-disciplinary, highly specialised laboratories where, for instance, materials scientists, engineers and finance experts could work alongside art conservationists.

This meant that Stanton Williams couldn’t base their design around user-engagement on current needs, or an analysis of existing facilities in need of improvement. Instead, they worked intensively with UCL staff and academics to understand what new teaching and research they might be undertaking in the future, and together they developed concepts for new facilities needed both in the immediate and longer term.

Stanton Williams’ main concern was with the way the building functioned socially, encouraging interaction between users, activities and disciplines. This led to them focus Marshgate’s expression and identity around the main collaborative spaces and communal areas. As a result, the building’s organisational strategy consists of 8 floors grouped into 'vertical neighbourhoods' of 2/3 floors. Horseshoe-shaped in plan, each ‘neighbourhood’ is oriented towards different views of the Olympic Park and organised around a double/triple height collaborative space. A central daylit atrium connects all activities vertically and highly visible circulation routes create further opportunities for interaction.

Student, academic and research spaces are located on the central floors, with highly specialised laboratories on the upper levels. The lower levels include a network of publicly accessible spaces with a café, art displays and activities designed to draw the public into the building, blurring the boundaries between interior/exterior and facilitating engagement with local businesses and communities.

Project information

Status

Built

Borough

Newham

Size

35000 sq m

Completion

September 2023

Location

7 Sidings St, London E15 2PX, UK

Team Credits