Survey of London moves to The Bartlett

The celebrated publication Survey of London today moved from English Heritage to join The Bartlett, UCL’s Faculty of the Built Environment. It will continue to be published by Yale University Press. 

The seven-strong editorial, research and illustrative team at the Survey of London will continue their work as part of The Bartlett School of Architecture, one of the world's leading centres for the history, theory and criticism of architecture as well as design.  Members of the Survey will contribute to the faculty’s teaching and research in architecture, planning, real estate and cultural heritage, as well as the related disciplines of geography, history, economics and archaeology.

English Heritage took over the Survey in 1999 from the Royal Commission on the Historical Monuments of England and has since produced six main volumes and one monograph in association with Yale University Press and the Paul Mellon Centre for Studies in British Art. These relationships will continue.

Professor Andrew Saint, General Editor of the Survey, said: “It is excellent news that we can pass on the success of the Survey to such a strong institution. No other city in the world can boast a publication about its urban history with the same depth and breadth as the Survey of London. It is an outstanding example of continuity and innovation in the field of descriptive and analytical urban history, and its move to The Bartlett ensures it will enjoy a strong and secure future.”

Professor Murray Fraser, Vice Dean of Research at The Bartlett, said: ‘We’re excited that The Bartlett is to become the new home for the Survey. Recording and interpreting our heritage is an essential part of creating the future.  The addition of the Survey enables us to expand UCL’s expertise in the field of cultural heritage and to engage more closely with its local urban environment as a focus for research.”

All but one of the Survey of London Main Series volumes are now available online following a four-year project funded by English Heritage to make them freely available. All of the Survey of London Monographs, with the exception of the Charterhouse volume (2010), are also online.

The Survey was founded in the 1890s by architect C. R. Ashbee to make a record of all London’s buildings of historic value before there were laws in place to protect them. It provides detailed architectural and topographical studies of London’s streets, and to date has covered almost half of inner London’s built fabric while also dealing with the expansion of the city and its extensive urban redevelopment. It has become a well-respected and authoritative reference point for planners, architects, historians and local residents.

The Survey of London’s unique methodology combines an illustration of buildings of all ages and types with an account of the economic, demographic and social development of each area of London covered. The results are presented in an accessible tone, with photographs and specially created architectural drawings.

In November 2013, volumes 49 and 50 in the Survey’s parish series, which focus on the Battersea area, will be published. Further advances in digital presentation are being proposed for future volumes.

Visit the Survey of London on The Bartlett School of Architecture website