Planning permission for the Pears Building, which will be home to the UCL Institute of Immunity and Transplantation (IIT), has been granted by Camden Council, subject to the completion of a S106 legal agreement and a range of planning conditions.

The £42 million building is a partnership between the Royal Free Charity, the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust and the University College London (UCL). 

The building will enable the second phase of the IIT, which is currently situated in the main hospital building. Scientists at the IIT are carrying out research into immune-related conditions such as leukaemia, type 1 diabetes and HIV. Scientific breakthroughs have already been made by IIT researchers and their work could bring benefits to thousands, if not millions, of patients across the world. 

The new building will also mean that more of our patients will have access to ground-breaking medical treatments through clinical trials. 

The new building will be constructed next to the Royal Free Hospital, where the multi-storey car park currently is.

As well as the IIT, the Pears Building will include patient accommodation, office space for volunteers and a car park.

Construction work is expected to begin in the spring and to finish in 2017.

Planning permission was granted by the council last night, subject to the completion of a S106 legal agreement and a range of planning conditions.

The money for the new building has been raised by the Royal Free Charity and UCL. An additional £25 million will be secured for the appointment of research teams.

David Sloman, the chief executive of the Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust, said: “I am delighted that planning permission for the Pears Building has been granted.

“The new building will bring huge benefits to patients, including providing on site accommodation for out-patients who live far from the hospital.

“Research being carried out at the IIT will bring benefits to patients across the world as new treatments for cancers and immune-related conditions are developed.”

Chris Burghes, the chief executive of the Royal Free Charity, added: “This is great news for patients at the Royal Free London. We have employed high calibre architects to design this building so that it reflects the architecture of the surrounding area and we aim to ensure this will be a building that everyone in Hampstead can be proud of.”

Professor Michael Arthur, UCL president and provost said: “Over the last half century, UCL and the Royal Free London have made major breakthroughs in the fields of transplant immunology, immunotherapy, and autoimmunity. These breakthroughs occur when researchers and clinicians can work together, and are the result of having the right people, from the right disciplines, with the right knowledge, together in the right place. In future, that place will be the IIT. Camden Council’s decision to approve the Pears Building is a significant milestone in the delivery of our ambitious shared vision.“