The High-Rise Hub

Looking Up: Creating future-fit tall buildings

With the UK intending to build 1.5m homes over this Parliament, high-rise development is going to play a pivotal role in delivering this target and solving the UK’s housing crisis. The country is on the cusp of a housing boom and the construction sector is readying itself to build upwards at pace.

While high-rise buildings are an efficient use of space, they bring about their own challenges, particularly around building safety and being future-fit, adaptable and attractive.

These themes, and more, have been explored in new research from URSA, via a 2025 survey of 100+ UK architects who design high-rise buildings. In May 2025, we brought this research to a group of 9 industry experts to get their thoughts on what the future holds for high-rise development. This hub pulls all of this together and is a place where you’ll find exclusive research, expert thoughts and insights on the future of tall buildings in 2025 and beyond.

View Insights >

How is industry adapting to new building safety regulations?

Exclusive research commissioned by URSA shows there is a knowledge gap around high-rise regulations, specifically in regards to the Building Safety Act (BSA).

Just over half (51%) of architects have a ‘comprehensive understanding’ of the BSA

52% of architects are still trying to get their heads around the impact of changes to building regulations

22% of architects say current information around the BSA is confusing

38% spend a lot of time trying to educate clients on BSA regulations

24% said there is confusion amongst clients on the new roles/duties required in the BSA

New regulations are also directly impacting the pace of construction, with architects reporting delays due to BSA Gateway checks. Our research shows that:

agree regulations are impacting high-rise development

have suffered some sort of delay on high-rise projects

say future of tall buildings feels uncertain due to planning approval issues

say stricter regulations have decreased focus on sustainability

How should high-rise buildings be designed?

Architects have revealed the challenges of high-rise construction in the current climate, as well as raising potential solutions to change public perceptions of these buildings and what design priorities should be.
According to architects…

The top challenges when designing high-rise buildings are…

  1. Structural stability and fire safety (joint top)
  2. Energy-efficiency
  3. Liability, risk and adhering to regulations
  4. Cost
  5. Social and community cohesion

The main solutions to changing public perceptions of high-rises are…

  1. Making buildings fit for future – usage, sustainability, adverse weather etc.
  2. Building high-rises with social value in mind
  3. Better master planning around the development
  4. Making high-rises more visually appealing/attractive
  5. Creating energy-efficient developments

The priorities for awarding consent for high-rise buildings should be…

  1. Appearance in context with surroundings
  2. Performance and livability
  3. Master planning around the development
  4. Creation of affordable housing
  5. Adding social value

High-rise hub insights

How does the future look for high-rises? What does the construction sector need to know? What can we expect to happen in the industry?
All of the big questions are addressed and answered in our insights section.
Read about the latest expert opinion pieces, debates, and research findings on high-rises below.

See our roundtable round up >
Read our blogs >

Research data on this page has been taken from a survey commissioned by URSA of 104 practising UK architects, all of whom have experience designing high-rise developments. The research was conducted using an online survey through a quality checked survey panel and was carried out between March and April 2025.

Design it. Build it. URSA it.

The performance of your rainscreen cladding depends on what you put inside. And there are so many reasons to choose URSA insulation.

REGISTER FOR CPD.

Our latest CPD presentation on the sustainability credentials of glass mineral wool is available now – to register your interest, simply complete the form below.