COMMUNITY LED DESIGN‍ ‍

A two-story building with wooden accents, a stone wall, and a sign indicating a men's restroom outside. The building has an open area with chairs and a mug inside on the left, and a person standing near a table outside on the right.
Two people, a woman and a man, are standing and looking at a detailed architectural model of a city or neighborhood on a table. The woman is pointing at the model, and is wearing glasses and a dark coat. The man is carrying a backpack, wearing glasses and beige pants. Behind them, there is a large screen displaying a photo of a woman with an older, wooden building in the background, and some smaller photos are pinned on a board to the right.

We create the conditions that turn lived experience into shared decisions.


We believe that involving the people who are most impacted by change in decision making and design creates  better, more durable outcomes. Participation is not an add-on or a compliance exercise, but a way of navigating complexity, building legitimacy and making informed choices in contested or uncertain contexts.

We design and facilitate participatory processes as a stand-alone service, embedded within architectural commissions and as part of our research and teaching. Across all contexts, our role is to create the conditions for informed dialogue, shared understanding and collective decision-making. We translate diverse perspectives into clear directions that allow projects to move forward with confidence and broad support.

participation projects

A colorful urban street scene with modern buildings, buses, pedestrians, bicycles, and landscaped areas.

Maida Hill Market Community Engagement

We helped Westminster City Council leverage a public realm project to build trust and improve community cohesion by creating a community-owned vision for Maida Hill Market.

Signs and posters advocating for creating safe spaces within the city, with messages about rejecting bodily contact and building community.

Alternative city Hall

Alternative City Hall was a week-long public art performance that invited residents of Exeter to playfully explore their right to the city and question what agency they hold to shape its present and future. 

Multiple people holding decorated glass stones with colorful patterns above a wooden floor.

tools for change makers

Tools for Changemakers is a values-driven short course that brings people together to (re)discover their purpose, reflect and learn how to create projects with long-lasting impact.

A miniature architectural model with small wooden houses, trees, and colorful flags on a table, representing a planned community or neighborhood development.

top down bottom up!

For the London Festival of Architecture 2026, we partnered with the Just City Working Group Kenya (JCWG). We collectively created ‘TOP DOWN BOTTOM UP! Collective Action for the Just City’

A woman appears excited with her hands raised while a man is looking at a long tube on the table during a science demonstration in an indoor space with brick walls.

housing for A changing planet botswana

Housing in Botswana is an ongoing teaching and research collaboration that explores how architectural education can support more just and climate-resilient forms of urbanisation.

Street scene with shops and cars, black-and-white image with a yellow circle in the background containing the text 'RE-COLOUR NORTH STREET'.
Street scene with shops and cars, black-and-white image with a yellow circle in the background containing the text 'RE-COLOUR NORTH STREET'.

RE-COLOUR NORTH STREET

We collaborated with the Exeter Civic Society to run a design charette that brought together technical experts and elected representatives with local residents and business owners to imagine how North Street in Exeter could be transformed. 

People sitting at a long dining table in a bright room with large windows, some engaging in conversation, with a fireplace on the right and shelves with various items above it.

FIRST FRIDAY

First Friday is where our neighbourhood comes together.

Held at the Old St. Leonards Hall on the first Friday of every month, it's an evening to meet neighbours, share stories, talk about the things that matter locally, play games, laugh together, and celebrate the spirit of our community.