Ten Years of Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Following the London 2012 Olympic Games, the London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) was keen to ensure that Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park made a lasting positive impact on the community and London as a whole. With goals to ‘transform the lives of East Londoners’ the LLDC embarked on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to develop a ‘dynamic new heart’ for East London.  

From the Olympic stadium being taken on by West Ham United to the Paralympic Sports Legacy programme providing activity engagement opportunities, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park has become an urban park with a difference.  

The years since London hosted the transformative Olympic Games have seen the park solidify itself as one of London’s great tourist attractions. Transport links including the high-flying cable cars that transport visitors across the Thames, ensure that people are drawn to the East End like never before. 

The WiFi PARK  

The visitor experience remained chief among the LLDC’s plans for a legacy development and to achieve this in a modern world meant the injection of a responsive WiFi solution; We at WiFi SPARK were lucky enough to be the ones to deliver it.  

Back in 2014 when our WiFi solution was set up, IT Programme & Change Manager, Ben Edmonds, noted that “the feedback we are getting from both visitors and staff in response to the WiFi has been exceptional and I can foresee a long and fruitful relationship between ourselves and WiFi SPARK from this point on.” 

The setup of a tailored user experience portal (UX) enabled the park to reinforce its brand identity and provide users with free WiFi as they roam about the park. Providing assistance, wayfinding, and access to news and marketing communications developed a premium experience for users and allowed them to better understand their surroundings. 

Safe surfing was also a priority with WiFi SPARK teaming up with Friendly WiFi to ensure users are protected from harmful links and offensive content whilst online at the park. 

As the years have passed, LLDC has been able to update the UX  to align 

with their brand messaging across the seasons and as focus activities change.  

The end of 2021 saw international superstars ABBA announce their return to the world of music from within the ArcelorMittal Orbit tower in The Park, a worldwide stream at which WiFi SPARK engineers were on hand to ensure the smooth running of operations. The fruitful relationship noted by Edmonds back in 2014 has certainly developed into a lasting friendship.  

Looking forward  

As ten years have gone by faster than most of us would like to admit, The Park has big plans for the future. 

• The East Bank that hosted the water polo arena back in 2012 is soon to become a powerhouse for innovation, creativity, and learning.  
• Here East, the London 2012 press and broadcast centre, is now the home of BT Sport, Pexal, and more, all contributing to visionary broadcasting.  
• Chobham Manor, the hub for basketball at the Olympics, has been in development to become home to 850 apartments, community facilities, shops, and 1,500 sq. meters of publicly accessible open space.  
• And the Olympic Stadium is set to go from strength to strength as a global entertainment venue.  

With reliable and far-reaching WiFi ensuring an exceptional user experience for anyone visiting, the future is bright indeed for Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to become a truly lasting legacy development.