Since this time last year, an additional 119 new tall buildings have been planned for London, according to a report published by New London Architecture (NLA) and GLHearn. This brings the total number of planned, tall buildings -- buildings of 20 floors or taller -- to 436.
The research conducted by the NLA shows that since last year, the number of tall buildings undergoing construction has inched from 70 to 89. An impressive 223 tall buildings have received planning approval and 114 towers are in pre-application or planning stages. Ninety-four tall buildings, up from 72 buildings in the previous year, were submitted for planning. Of those 94, 43 were approved in the same year. The survey also notes that a significant number of these tall buildings are part of larger scale master plans, which situate multiple towers in clusters.
The completion of tall buildings in London is still relatively low, with only 19 completed in 2015, indicating that while many are being planned, only a few have been delivered. For the third year in a row, the London borough Tower Hamlets, has the majority of the tall buildings surveyed with a total of 93 proposals. City Pride in this borough will become the capital's tallest residential tall building at 75 floors. Greenwich takes second place with 67 projects, while 23 are proposed in Barnet and 18 in Croydon. The City Cluster will see an increase of tall buildings around Leadenhall, with the proposed 1 Undershaft becoming the tallest in the city at 73 stories tall.
The average height of London’s new tall buildings is approximately 30 stories, with 60% of the tall buildings standing somewhere between 20 and 29 stories. A mere eight tall buildings reach more than 60 stories. The growing trend is towards tall buildings being built primarily for residential programs.
Sir Edward Lister, Deputy Mayor of Planning, said: “London is in the middle of a population boom that shows no sign of slowing down and it’s important we look at a range of options to achieve both the housing and work space need. Tall buildings can play a role in meeting some of that demand and the Mayor has ordered a strategic approach to securing the world-class architecture of the capital’s skyline to ensure they sit well in their surroundings and are of the highest standards possible.Tall buildings are positioned in the right areas of London in planned clusters which work well together and ensure they make a positive contribution in delivering much-needed homes, affordable housing and jobs.”
The London Tall Buildings Survey 2016 was produced by New London Architecture (NLA) and GL Hearn in March 2016, with data support from EGi and covers the period 01 March 2015 – 29 February 2016. Data was taken from a range of sources, including The Mayor’s Planning Decisions published on london.gov.uk, local authority and developer websites, news bulletins, and information obtained from consultants involved from individual schemes.
