The 2025 Stirling Prize shortlist has reignited debate about whether Britain's most prestigious architecture award unfairly favors London-based projects. With four of the six shortlisted buildings located in London and the remaining two within 60 miles of the capital, this year's selection represents the most geographically concentrated shortlist in the award's 29-year history. The all-southeast England lineup has prompted renewed criticism that the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) prize overlooks exceptional architecture from other regions across the United Kingdom.
Critics have been vocal about the apparent geographic bias. Architecture columnist Catherine Slessor questioned in The Guardian whether "there really is no noteworthy new architecture north of the Fens," while The Times noted that the shortlist "continues a capital-centric approach that attracts annual criticism." These concerns echo longstanding complaints from Scottish architects, including prominent architect Rab Bennetts and Neil Baxter, secretary of the Royal Incorporation of Architects Scotland, who argued in 2011 that Scottish projects were systematically overlooked by the award's selection process.
A comprehensive analysis of Stirling Prize data reveals the extent of London's dominance in the competition. Since the award's inception in 1996, 178 buildings have been shortlisted, with 132 (74 percent) located in England. More striking is that 76 shortlisted buildings – 43 percent of the total – are specifically in London. This geographic concentration has become even more pronounced in recent years, with London accounting for 63 percent of shortlisted buildings since 2020, compared to just 38 percent in the 24 years before the COVID-19 pandemic.
The representation of other UK regions tells a stark story of underrepresentation. Scotland has achieved just one Stirling Prize victory – the Scottish Parliament building in 2005 – with only 10 Scottish projects making the shortlist throughout the award's history. The situation is even more dire for Wales and Northern Ireland, with Wales managing just one shortlisted project (the Senedd parliament building in 2006, designed by London-based Richard Rogers Partnership) and Northern Ireland achieving only two shortlisted entries. Remarkably, Wales ranks ninth in shortlist representation, behind several European countries that were eligible before Brexit.
The judging process for the Stirling Prize involves multiple stages designed to ensure thorough evaluation. Buildings must first win RIBA Regional Awards within their respective regions, then progress to RIBA National Awards, before finally competing for the six Stirling Prize shortlist positions. Each project undergoes multiple visits from different jury panels, making the RIBA awards program one of the world's most comprehensive architecture prize systems. However, critics argue that this process may inadvertently favor regions with higher concentrations of architectural activity and investment.
London's dominance extends beyond just the location of winning buildings to encompass the architectural firms designing them. Of the 28 Stirling Prize winners to date, only five have been designed by studios not headquartered in London. Three of those were international firms – Herzog & de Meuron, EMBT, and Grafton Architects – leaving just two UK-based studios outside London (Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios and Hodder & Partners) to claim victory in nearly three decades of competition.
Experts point to economic factors as a key driver of London's architectural dominance. According to Office for National Statistics data cited by architecture journalist Eleanor Jolliffe, London saw £8.7 billion in construction spending in 2023, compared to just £1.8 billion in England's Northeast region. Similarly, London's architectural services contributed £4.8 billion to the economy versus £489 million from the Northeast. "While I would like to believe that groundbreaking architecture can be cheap, the reality is that really good buildings are very expensive," Jolliffe noted.
RIBA President Chris Williamson acknowledged the geographic imbalance while defending the award's integrity. "As with many national award programs, any regional overrepresentation ultimately reflects the levels of investment across the country," he explained. "It also reflects London's status as a global hub, attracting global talent, where competition for innovation remains exceptionally high." Williamson emphasized that the organization constantly reviews its awards criteria and pointed to 116 regional award winners across the UK as evidence of architectural excellence beyond London.
A potential solution could involve restructuring the shortlist selection process to ensure broader geographic representation. Currently, each of the 13 RIBA regions selects a "Building of the Year" alongside their regional awards. These 13 buildings could form the Stirling Prize shortlist instead of the current system, guaranteeing representation from every region while maintaining competitive standards. This approach would ensure that exceptional architecture from Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, and England's regions outside London receives equal consideration for the nation's top architectural honor.
As the 2025 Stirling Prize winner is announced this week, with bookmaker William Hill favoring the Elizabeth Tower refurbishment by Purcell (another London project), the debate over geographic bias seems likely to continue. Whether through structural changes to the selection process or increased investment in regional architecture projects, addressing the perception of London-centrism may be essential for maintaining the Stirling Prize's credibility as a truly national celebration of British architectural excellence.
