Fleet Street Quarter’s Evolution

The Fleet Street Quarter is an area covering 43-hectares at the western end of the City and it is emerging as a fast-growing centre for employment and economic development. The area has been evolving for over 2000 years, during which time it has faced and overcome many challenges. Now, in the face of our biggest global challenge, climate change, the district and the businesses within it, are entering a new era of adaptation and transition to net zero.

At this exciting time of growth and evolution, with new buildings created and old ones adapted, a key question we ask is how can we rebuild in a way that creates sustainable economic growth? I believe the answer could already exist within the Square Mile.

Our recent Baseline Economic Study showed how solid job growth in established and emerging sectors is creating a sustainable commercial hub in the Fleet Street Quarter. Since 2018, jobs in the area have risen 20.6%, equivalent to 15,700 workers, which represents a job growth rate 11.7% higher than levels across London as a whole. A major contributor to the City of London, the area generates tax revenues in excess of £4 billion.

Our role as the business improvement district is to harness the clear mandate, given to us by local businesses, to drive change by leading, shaping and influencing a programme of activity to reposition the Fleet Street Quarter as a thriving destination to work, visit, live and invest in. By connecting the dots between major developers, existing occupiers and key stakeholders, the Fleet Street Quarter can be at the forefront of re-defining how cities work and operate sustainably.

Business improvement districts have the ability to power this transformation, supporting the evolution of new commercial centres. They’re a partnership between local businesses which come together and agree to pay an additional levy to develop beneficial local projects.

A RADICAL RENAISSANCE

The Fleet Street Quarter is embarking on a radical renaissance. Over the next five years, a gross development value of £5bn will be invested into the area through 34 developments. We are witnessing a remarkable coalition of the willing, where private and public sector investors are unified by confidence in the area. It’s an inspiring new dawn, as we watch The City’s skyline evolve first-hand.

Across the development pipeline, developers are targeting the highest sustainability credentials, with many using green retrofitting techniques.

The ascent of the Fleet Street Quarter area is backed by the City of London Corporation and creating a sustainable district is a key pillar of our vision. The City of London City Plan 2040 has identified the location as an area for key economic growth, and the City’s green targets will be central to the next exciting phase of expansion. Over the next year, the BID will launch a host of initiatives to accelerate growth whilst tackling environmental issues.

Enhancing public realm will underpin a sustainable future too, as the Fleet Street Quarter area provides the blueprint for the green reimagination of commercial centres. Last November, our £80 million public realm vision outlined 34 potential sites for public realm development.

Our Climate Festival

To harness the area’s sustainable regeneration ambition and share ideas, we’re so excited to be hosting our first Climate Festival during this year’s London Climate Action Week. This flagship LCAW event will build on the inspirational work of the City of London. We want to create an opportunity for our local businesses to collaborate with other business leaders, Public Sector partners, and sustainability experts to identify best practice and new ideas that support them in their decarbonisation goals.

Comprising a series of high-level debates and networking events, the Festival’s overarching theme is, creating a blueprint for a more sustainable future.

Across two days (25^th and 26^th June), more than 20 senior leaders in the sustainability, property, finance, media and legal sectors, from across the Fleet Street Quarter area and beyond, will share their insights and opinions on some of the most pressing challenges and opportunities facing business as it seeks to forge a plan for delivering a decarbonised model for the future.

Come and join us! You can book free tickets here.

The Fleet Street Quarter area is entering an exciting new chapter in its 2000-year history of reinvention, that will help drive the City of London towards a sustainable future for generations to come.

Lady Lucy French is CEO of the Fleet Street Quarter BID