Is vertical living a solution for London's strained housing stock?

. Photo: Gareth Williams

A new generation of apartment towers are rising above London. Is this the answer to London's housing crisis? And is social cohesion being reinforced or jettisoned at the same time? Zoe Green considers the new policy climate that has brought these changes about.

Mayor Boris Johnson has clear aspirations for London to become 'the best big city on earth'. Whether this is achieved or not, its size is beyond doubt and growing fast, with the population expected to rise by up to a million above its current  8.2 million residents by 2031. This growth is accompanied by demographic change — later marriage, fewer children, more divorce and longer lives — driving up demand for new homes and resulting in overall household growth which outstrips the population growth rate. London's draft Housing Strategy identifies that of the 750 to 850 thousand additional households the city will have by then, almost three-quarters will be single-person households.

Full story: The Global Urbanist

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