• City Corporation receives highest number of annual applications in 10 years
• Major applications (over 100,000 square metres of new floorspace) received highest in five years (up 36% on 2024)
• Permitted office floorspace over half a million square metres for 2025 (more than 7.5 Gherkins)

The City of London Corporation planners have just seen a 10-year record for applications received, broken in the calendar year 2025, a signal of huge and rising demand for premium office space in central London.

With over half a million square metres of office space granted planning permission, around half of which is already under construction, the Corporation has also beaten a 10-year record for decisions made.

It means the Square Mile will remain a hive of building activity in the years ahead, with significant projects such as 1 Undershaft already underway, and with 85 and 60 Gracechurch Street starting in early 2026.

The City of London Corporation is seeking to accommodate rapidly rising demand for new, sustainable, Grade A office space. According to Avison Young, the office vacancy rate for the City of London is reportedly around 7.4% but drops much lower (to around 1.9-2.6%) for the Grade A towers, with the Square Mile’s largest office building, 22 Bishopsgate, now fully occupied.

2025 has also seen major progress on the City’s Local Plan (City Plan 2040), now in the final stages of consultation and on track to be adopted in the first half of 2026, setting the blueprint for the future growth of the Square Mile. Furthermore, the City Corporation's full suite of sustainability guidance was also adopted this year and work is progressing to secure a delivery partner for the development of a low cost, low carbon heat network. Additionally, retrofit schemes accounted for half of the planning applications received in 2025, providing a significant boost to the Corporation’s goal to achieve a net zero Square Mile by 2040.

Over £400 million of Section 106 and Community Infrastructure Levy contributions has been generated from approved planning permissions over this 10-year period, helping to fund the Elizabeth Line, affordable housing schemes in neighbouring boroughs, as well as a range of local public realm improvements, including Finsbury Circus Garden and the Greyfriars Square project.

Additional benefits coming as a result of the planning approvals include ten new public walkways through the City. Concentrated around Bishopsgate, Old Broad Street and Liverpool Street, planning officers have been enabling shortcuts and cut throughs between busy throughfares to ease congestion, making better connections to stations and opening up new views of City landmarks to improve wayfinding.

Chairman of the City of London Corporation Planning & Transportation Committee, Tom Sleigh, said:

“This record-breaking year proves one thing: Britain’s Central Business District is booming. The Square Mile remains the nation’s engine room for investment growth, and the pace of demand is only accelerating.

“With 20 major office schemes, including eight new towers, now under construction and thousands of jobs being created, the City is once again showing the rest of the country how to plan for growth.

"None of it would be possible without the dedication and expertise of our planning team. My heartfelt thanks to them all, and a well-earned congratulations for helping to shape a world-class City.

“These are not just buildings but commitments to Britain’s economic future. Our planning pipeline is powering the City’s evolution into a more sustainable, better connected, and more vibrant destination for businesses, workers and visitors alike.”