The Bank of England’s grand Grade I-listed HQ on Threadneedle Street has been around for nearly 200 years. In order to survive all those decades and centuries, it’s undergone several huge overhauls. The building was first designed by Sir John Soane and completed in the 1830s, then its was demolished and rebuilt by Sir Herbert Baker in the 1930s (only its façade stayed the same) and then it given another big facelift in the 1990s. Now, it’s due its next major upgrade.
The refurb will begin in 2026 and be led by Purcell Architecture – the same firm that restored Westminster’s Elizabeth Tower and revamped the National Portrait Gallery.
The public is unlikely to see the results of the refurb, though. Most of the project will focus on replacing ageing infrastructure, rather than changing the external look of the building. It’s been called an ‘incredibly complex project’ and is expected to take until 2029 to complete. The plans include replacing ‘end-of-life heating, pumping and ventilation systems’ and redesigning the current office layout to create extra workspace.
Vivienne Grafton, the bank’s executive director of central operations, told Architects Journal that ‘the focus is very much on internal refurbishment and adaptive reuse, rather than an extensive new build’.
She said: ‘This is an opportunity to breathe new life into a legacy building, not through radical reinvention, but through thoughtful, intelligent transformation.
‘The Bank of England is more than a financial institution. In London alone, it is a workplace, a site of public engagement through financial literacy campaigns and the Bank of England Museum, and a central part of the City of London’s identity. Our ambition is to support all these functions, and more, within a renewed estate that demonstrates public value, sustainability, and respect for heritage.’
Did you see that Highgate Cemetery’s huge revamp has been officially approved?
Plus: the Science Museum is opening a new gallery in 2028.
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