Open House London is the world’s largest architecture festival, giving free public access to 800+ buildings, walks, talks and tours over one weekend in September each year.
Who
The first Open House London started in 1992. Back then our ethos was much the same as it is today. Giving free access to London’s best buildings was our founder Victoria Thornton’s way of inspiring the public about the benefits of great design. Our small team of staff deliver our programmes with the help of volunteers from across London, particularly from the built environment professions.
What
We are home to London’s most respected architectural education team – literally thousands of schoolchildren have participated in our annual programmes, we also run design awareness courses for community groups and host an annual sustainable cities conference for our expert professional audience. Much of what we do centres upon bringing city-makers - architects, developers, engineers, contractors – and the public together. Professionals play a key role in our education programmes, helping children learn about architecture, planning and infrastructure.
Why
We believe the best cities arise when an informed and diverse public play an active role in shaping and maintaining the neighbourhoods they live in. We’re in this game for a very simple reason: because we love cities and we love London. And because we believe that great design - in architecture, urban design, planning and infrastructure - can transform the lives of ordinary people for the better.
Open House in numbers
Each year over a quarter of a million people take part in the Open House weekend, visiting over 800 buildings, walks, talks and tours across London
The Open House guide is the biggest architectural publication in the UK, with a print run of 100,000 each year
The Open House concept has spread around the world, with over 35 cities across 5 continents in our ever-growing Open House Worldwide family