New design standards needed for tall buildings in London

New tall residential buildings in London may not be meeting the capital’s housing needs or contributing positively to the city, a London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee report has found.
 
The report – Do tall buildings work in London? – states that tall buildings are not always delivering for residents at different stages of their lives, with the Committee noting that families sometimes lack the amenities they need.
 
The Committee also heard evidence that flats in new tall buildings are often too expensive for those who need housing the most.
 
The report recommends that the Greater London Authority (GLA) works with London Boroughs to share expertise and evidence, and to set out design standards to ensure that tall buildings are of a standard that meets Londoners’ needs.
 
Recommendations in the report include: 

• The GLA should conduct a housing typology assessment to understand what mixture of housing typologies London needs as part of its Strategic Housing Market Assessment (SHMA).
• The GLA should also assess whether tall buildings are driving increasing land values, and conduct an assessment of the whole life carbon impacts of tall buildings and how they fit with sustainability goals of the London Plan.
• The GLA should produce guidance setting housing design standards specifically for tall residential buildings as part of the next London Plan.
• The GLA should work with London Councils to convene and resource an ‘Environment and sustainability in planning’ community of practice to enable Boroughs to share knowledge and expertise.

Chair of the London Assembly Planning and Regeneration Committee, Andrew Boff AM, said:
 
“While this Committee holds a range of views on the merits of tall residential buildings, it is united in its view that they must be built to the highest standards to meet Londoners’ housing needs.
 
“Our investigation has shown that there is a lack of understanding of what a successful tall building is and not enough is being done to measure it.
 
“The GLA needs to do much more in this space, by creating design standards for tall buildings, gathering more evidence on their suitability and sustainability, and setting out what mixture of building types London needs – not just the overall number of homes required.”
 
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