Moorfields Eye Hospital is set to relocate to a new "world leading" HQ in Kings Cross from Old Street, where it has been located for more than a century.

Plans to build the eye care, research and education centre were granted planning permission by Camden Council on Thursday night, and now just need approval from the Greater London Authority to go ahead.

Islington Gazette: Moorfields Eye Hospital in City Road, off the Old Street roundaboutMoorfields Eye Hospital in City Road, off the Old Street roundabout (Image: Google)

Bosses at Moorfields said the centre, on the site of St Pancras Hospital in St Pancras Way, will bring patient-centred eye care, cutting-edge research and exemplary education all under one roof.

It is set in the heart of the Knowledge Quarter, an internationally renowned hub for science and innovation with 76 organisations - from the British Library to the Wellcome Trust - all within a one mile radius from Camden Town to Covent Garden.

Dubbed Oriel, the eye centre is a joint initiative between the hospital, UCL Institute of Ophthalmology and Moorfields Eye Charity who have been working on the plans since 2013.

They believe the new centre will attract talented clinicians, researchers and educators, enabling the speedier delivery of new treatments and therapies for patients.

Engagement is ongoing on the design of its interior, which will have a spacious atrium at its heart, surrounded by clinical, research and education spaces.

A series of events are planned throughout the summer to consult with staff, patients and partner organisations.

Prof Alan Thompson, Dean of the UCL Faculty of Brain Sciences, said: “World-class research, innovation and education merit a first-rate facility.

“With common eye conditions expected to rise rapidly over the next 15 years, we need to plan for the future.

“Oriel promises to deliver a more collaborative working environment that will support our translational ‘bench to bedside’ research through the co-development of research and early involvement of clinicians and patients.”

Oriel is part of a wider masterplan for the five-acre St Pancras Hospital site, with plans being brought forward separately by King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership for a mixed-use development on the remaining three acres of land.