New London Architecture has published the results of their annual Tall Building Survey. Now in its sixth year, the report declares 2019 as “The Year of the Tall Building” with a record number of 76 tall buildings set to be completed in the UK capital in 2019.
Among the key findings from the report, it was revealed that the completion of tall buildings is set to be three times higher than in 2018. There are currently 541 tall buildings in the pipeline for the capital, with 22 out of London’s 33 boroughs containing tall buildings under construction. These tall buildings will offer more than 110,000 new homes for a city with chronic housing shortages.
The status of the 541 tall buildings in the London pipeline can be broken into 54 under pre-planning, 75 in planning, 291 with permission granted, and 121 under construction. 62% of these buildings range between 20 and 29 stories, with 38% over 30 stories. Although 2019 will see a three-fold increase in completed tall buildings, applications for tall buildings is down by 3.8% from 2018. East London leads the way in terms of tall buildings proposed or under construction with 257 buildings, compared to 96 buildings in Central London, 90 in West London, 62 in South London, and 34 in North London.
The research confirms that tall buildings are an established component of the London skyline, and the city’s development programme, in spite of existing political uncertainty. The NLA report maintains a neutral, objective stance on tall buildings, citing LSE research that shows tall buildings work well for young occupiers, and less well for families. It also stresses the importance of maintaining a high standard of architectural design in tall buildings, given their impact on the London skyline.
The full report is available to read on the New London Architecture website here.
