MC – High Rise – London

A record 60 tall buildings, both residential and commercial, were completed in 2019, whilst the pipeline of future tall buildings – at various stages of the planning process – now stands at 525.Indeed, the 2020 Tall Buildings Survey has confirmed trends seen in past years – that tall buildings are now a common form of housing; and density, especially close to transport nodes and in opportunity areas.With London’s population continuing to rise, and the demand for new homes and office space only getting higher, this provides growing evidence that well-designed tall buildings, in the right place, are part of the solution.Our analysis suggests that, from a residential perspective alone, the tall building pipeline could provide more than 100,000 new homes, meeting a significant portion of London’s housing requirements.

There also appears to be an increased willingness from planning authorities to consider height positively, particularly in outer London boroughs where there has been significant growth in the pipeline of tall buildings in recent years.

A range of factors have underpinned this shift, including comparatively lower land values — which can make sites more viable to build (particularly given increased affordable housing requirements) — and estate regeneration programmes in outer boroughs. Increased housing targets from the New London Plan are also likely to have contributed to the growing pipeline, encouraging developers and local authorities to consider higher density schemes.