The straight answer is there is no formal record of tallest poles in the UK.
However, for many years the record for the world’s tallest pole was held by a wooden pole at Kew Gardens at 69m. This pole was dismantled in 2007 because it had become unsafe and decayed.
Modern metal poles can now be made taller although realistic maximum size for ‘off the shelf’ poles are a more modest 20m. Even at this height, it is in an impressive piece of engineering standing as tall as an average 6 storey building.
We recently installed one of these poles directly adjacent to the M5 in Birmingham for a building firm who was looking to be seen by the traffic passing on the Motorway. The tallest flagpoles in Britain are actually those attached to buildings such as the pole above Victoria tower in Westminster which stands at just over 120m tall.
This is also one of the ‘Senior’ flagpoles in Britain flying the Nations flag at all times except when the Queen it at Westminster when the Royal Standard is flown. However several of the former soviet states and some Arab states have made it something of a national competition to have the world’s tallest flagpole.
