King’s College London has said it is investing £45.5m in science research, education, and infrastructure.

King’s has a long history of scientific breakthroughs, including the discovery of the structure of DNA, the development of the theory of electromagnetism by bringing together theories of magnetism, electricity and light, and the facilitation of the world’s first human-to-human blood transfusion by applying scientific knowledge to medical interventions.

The university said that the investment will help boost growth, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovation across the core natural sciences of chemistry, biology, physics and mathematics.

“King’s has been delivering groundbreaking science for almost two hundred years," said Professor Rachel Mills, senior vice president (academic) and Professor of ocean chemistry. "Today, the world’s most pressing challenges demand science solutions that are not defined by traditional disciplines and that emerge from the intersection of current knowledge.

"Through this multi-million-pound investment programme, King's will leverage its two-century legacy – building on the exceptional work of our world-class scientists – to power a new era of interdisciplinary science innovation that meet society’s ever-changing needs.”

King's said that in a bid to create the conditions needed to stimulate new discoveries it is appointing 64 new staff members.

It is also launching high-profile interdisciplinary research centres in critical growth areas for the UK economy. This includes the newly launched Net Zero Centre and the Centre for the Physical Science of Life, alongside plans for new centres in Statistics and in Quantum Technologies.

The university said that through the investment, it is rapidly developing new laboratories and science teaching spaces to provide the "high-quality", modern infrastructure and facilities needed to support science education and research across its central London campuses.

Professor Mark French, assistant principal (Campus Futures), said: “This is an exciting time for science at King’s. We are driving forward an ambitious investment programme that will rapidly scale our science capabilities by strengthening our science education programmes, bolstering our research talent and transforming our facilities and infrastructure. This significant investment will deepen our academic excellence and propel innovation across scientific disciplines.”

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