On 3 March, we welcomed South Bank BID levy payers and key local partners to our latest South Bank Data, Research & Insights event – a valuable opportunity to step back from the day-to-day and look at the bigger picture shaping our neighbourhood.
Digging into the trends and sentiments revealed in our latest footfall figures and audience research, our Head of Communications, Engagement & Brand Kelly Bliss presented a summary of South Bank's performance in 2025.
We were also delighted to be joined by Bernard Donoghue OBE, the CEO of ALVA (the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions) who shared his expert insights into what businesses serving the visitor economy should be looking out for in the coming year.
Key takeaways from our South Bank Data, Research & Insights event
Culture is a key footfall driver
In 2025 we commissioned independent audience research to look at what motivates visitors to the South Bank and how they spent their time here, conducted through on-the-ground interviews and online surveys. Across both on the day and previous visitors, 50% came to the South Bank primarily to attend a cultural event or performance. 82% of previous visitors attend cultural venues at least twice a year.
Footfall in South Bank exceeded 38million in 2025
According to our analysis of the past two years of data drawn from the BID’s subscription to the High Streets Data Service (HSDS), footfall in South Bank continues to grow. In 2025 footfall exceeded 38 million visitors, representing a growth of 20% in two years.
Your biggest competitor is the comfort and flexible convenience of staying at home
You’re not competing with the attraction down the road. You’re competing with a walk and an ice cream and a Netflix subscription. Convenience, comfort and lack of hassle are really important factors motivating visitors – especially during hot weather – with visitors wanting ‘joy for money’ not just ‘value for money’.
2019 is not your benchmark!
It is time to stop comparing performance to 2019 – don’t set yourself a false standard! Social factors including energy consumption, carbon emissions, cost of living, global uncertainty – the patterns of 2019 simply no longer apply.
Many visitors are planning late
While many visitors begin their planning in advance, final decisions are very often made at the last minute. According to our audience research, 40% of on-the-day visitors had planned their trip to the South Bank within 24hrs of visiting. This pattern is also reflected across ALVA's nationwide research.
Halloween is now huge
According to ALVA’s nationwide research, footfall on Halloween rose +4.6% year-on-year, with almost half of surveyed UK consumers saying they planned to celebrate Halloween in 2025. Halloween is a rapidly growing trend and it lends itself to a wealth of creative interpretations.
The Christmas period offers a clear strategic opportunity for South Bank
Festive season footfall in South Bank continues to grow year-on-year and traffic to our digital channels shows a marked interest in festive programming and Christmas-related activities. There is clear demand for a festive offering across the neighbourhood - partnership working could create London’s best winter destination.
Find out more
If you didn’t have the chance to attend this latest data, research and insights event and would like more details on the research and data presented, please get in touch with us at southbankbid@sbeg.co.uk
Please note that as this is an event held exclusively for South Bank BID levy payers, we are only able to share our data and analysis with levy payers from South Bank BID.
