They say that in London, you’re never more than 10 metres away from a rat. But, you’re also probably near an architectural gem. During June, the London Festival of Architecture invites city-dwellers to deepen their understanding of the capital’s built environment, and offers fresh perspectives on how we live in it.
Now in its 32nd year, the 2026 programme includes more than 350 events spread across the capital’s boroughs – and this year’s theme is Belonging.
It’s a theme that very much reflects the current state of London, says Eliza Grosvenor, head of LFA’s public programming. “There have been a lot of conversations about whose voices are listened to and how that impacts our city,” she says. “We had our first meeting to choose the theme a couple of weeks after the far right marches had happened so, while the theme might not be obviously architecture-related, that gave us a very spatial awareness of who gets to belong and what is the built environment’s role in shaping that.”
The festival’s programme focuses on 11 neighbourhoods, including, for the first time, Chrisp Street Market in Poplar, celebrating 75 years since it was completed as the UK’s first purpose-built pedestrian shopping centre for the Festival of Britain. South Bank is also marking the same anniversary. Colindale and Edgware in Barnet will be under the spotlight as emerging cultural hubs, while Kensington will highlight its art, design and science heritage with events at the more recently opened Design Museum and Japan House. Elsewhere, Zaha Hadid Architects is hosting an open studio offering a look behind the scenes at one of the country’s leading practices.
Here are Grosvenor’s five picks of what to see at this year’s festival.
Find Fitzrovia
Perfect for: those who love exploring new areas.
Take a self-guided tour through Fitzrovia, marked by colourful stacked cylindrical installations positioned to showcase some of the neighbourhood’s hidden gems. The design of each totem – its patterns, colours and materials used – will reference Fitzrovia’s local landmarks and decorative details of its buildings. June 1–30.
Murray Lecture Keynote: Jayden Ali
Perfect for: anyone with an interest in the built environment.
Architect and artist Jayden Ali (whose recent work includes the Why We Make Galleries at the new V&A East Museum and design salon Matter and Shape in Paris) will unpack the festival’s Belonging theme in relation to the future of London’s neighbourhoods and high streets. The London Centre. June 1, 7pm.
Lego Challenge 2026
Perfect for: families and future city-makers.
The festival’s much-loved Lego Challenge returns for another year. Kids aged six to 12 will assist architects in a two-hour competition to construct the most imaginative project around the theme of “belonging in good homes and places”. The London Centre. June 20, midday–2pm.
Goulston Street Pocket Park
Perfect for: those curious to see the city change in real time.
Head to the Colombian Coffee Company in Spitalfields and discover a “pocket park” by competition winner Out Architecture, transforming an underused corner of the Petticoat Lane Market area into a space to relax. It’s named Macchiato, after the circular stain left by a coffee cup, with a circular seating design inspired by the cup’s shape. June 1–30.
Seeds in the City
Perfect for: those wanting to reconnect with nature without leaving the City.
Emerging architecture studio Studio Folk with Raskl won an LFA competition to create an experimental pavilion on St Giles Terrace in the Barbican. It’s a chance to appreciate the juxtaposition of the Barbican’s brutalist architecture and the nature-inspired installation, which will also host an event series. Dates TBC.
The London Festival of Architecture will run across London from June 1–30.
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