Minister Praises SAE Institute's Tech City Expansion

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23rd January 2012

Universities and Science Minister, The Rt Hon David Willetts MP praises SAE Institute at the official opening of it's new £4m high profile educational studio complex covering 8,500 square feet in Hackney, London making this the largest creative media college in the UK.

VIP's and guests from the world of audio were amongst those gathered to celebrate the official opening of SAE London's 24/7 Bankstock studio facility, situated in the heart of London's vibrant and fashionable East End.

In his opening speech, Prof Zbys Klich, MD and CEO of SAE Institute UK revealed that one of the reasons why SAE owner Navitas endorsed the move of SAE's HQ from Byron Bay to Oxford, "Was because of the enormous encouragement and support the institute received from the British Government, particularly the Department of Trade and Investment."

In a message read out by Andrew Levi, MD of UKTI, on behalf of MP David Willetts, the Minister said "I'm extremely sorry that I can't be with you tonight to celebrate SAE's expansion here in Tech City.  SAE is now London's largest creative and media college. The Institute recognises that the UK is synonymous with high quality higher education and, for creative media technologies, they have realised the strengths that exist here in Tech City''. 

"I'm aware of all the fantastic musicians SAE graduates have worked with such as U2, Radiohead, Madonna and Tom Jones at Abbey Road and Soho Recording Studios and of their work on films such as Slumdog Millionaire and Pirates of the Caribbean''.

"The UK does punch above its weight when it comes to Digital Media.  We have both the talent and the market appetite for new forms of content that has attracted many of the world's best to our shores. So SAE are in one of the best locations in the world to continue growing and producing more digital media professionals in the future. I wish you every success going forward."

Designed and built to the highest acoustic standard, on two floors with 14 interconnected studios (5 live rooms and 9 control rooms) Bankstock Studio has created the ideal environment to train the next generation of creative media professionals.

Luca Barassi, College and Project Manager for the Bankstock development said, "It was crucial for us to provide students with a professional studio environment and at the same time give them enough flexibility to explore different production techniques. This project has been a massive undertaking and we are very excited to unveil it to the public".