Spring Cleaning: adapt and change to the changing market

The UK construction industry continues to suffer the effects of the economic downturn. Architectural practices are often the first to feel the effect, and the last to recover.

Faced with the unfortunate reality of diminishing workloads and fee cutting, practices need to adapt to the changing market.

Last week we held our first Small Practice CPD Day. This invited individuals to reflect on their own businesses, identify possible changes and how to approach these changes positively.

Kevin Schofield from IEI Consulting started the day by discussing the importance of adaption and change in the current climate.

Natalie Saunders from Pharos Legal, then discussed Management for results: getting the most out of your staff (whilst keeping out of the tribunal). Perhaps the most important piece of advice she gave, with regards to motivating and keeping hold of staff in the current climate, is to be as transparent as possible. Keeping junior staff informed and explaining the difficulties that a practice is going through, and how individuals can help in the bigger picture will help towards maintaining morale.

Initially, a number of the sole practitioners were not sure that this session would be relevant to them. However, Natalie made it relevant to them by showing them how to manage themselves for results.

Lucy Mori from KL Mori Business Consulting for Architects  discussed How to kick-start your practice and win new work. This was an interactive workshop discussing how to analyse existing practice. During the 2 hour session, Lucy worked through a business plan template with attendees, advising how to think like an entrepreneur and take control of your business. I have never heard a room of architects so quiet!

Amanda Reekie and Alice Fawke from Stratton and Reekie gave us an essential tool-kit to PR and marketing. They described the different methods of marketing available and identified that the most important aspect of any marketing campaign is the identification of your audience, and what makes you different from everyone else. A mid afternoon workshop session on branding explained the importance of understanding other people’s perception of your business, in order to influence it.

Robert Evans from Evans Vettori Architects finished the day with a pictorial representation of the A to Z of setting up practice in the recession, using his experience of setting up practice in the mid 1990s recession. This was a perfect end to the day as Robert described the ups and downs of running a practice through difficult times, and shared lessons he had learnt through his own experience. 

Feedback from attendees was fantastic:

Deborah Carr, Bridger Carr: Thanks for the small business day yesterday – I found it really valuable advice.  I am now ready to take over the world!

 
James Mate, Doma Architects: Thanks for a fantastic day. Feel thoroughly inspired!
 

Stuart Fullerton, Wildblood Macdonald Chartered Architects: It was a really good event yesterday, I thoroughly enjoyed the day and found it very useful. It certainly got the brain going, so much so that I woke up at 4am this morning trying to work out a business plan!! (Sorry Stuart!)

People of Yorkshire, are you bothered about being bottom? New houses in Yorkshire and the Humber are the smallest in the country – it’s time to demand better!

On Thursday 10 May RIBA Yorkshire hit the streets of Leeds to ask local people whether they are ‘bothered about being bottom’. A living room stage set, that recreated the space that is missing from new homes in the region, was installed at Victoria Gardens, the Headrow outside the art gallery in Leeds.

The stage set: the mat illustrates the 8 square metres missing from the average new-build 3 bedroom home in the UK today. The taped area indicates the additional 5square metres missing from 3 bedroom homes in Yorkshire. 
Photographer: MJ Heritage Photography

RIBA research has revealed the average new three bedroom home being built in Yorkshire and the Humber is 13 square metres smaller than the basic recommended minimum size, and is therefore depriving families the space needed for children to do homework, adults to work from home, guests to stay and for members of the household to relax together. With a floor area of just 83 square metres, the average house in the region is 13 sqm short of the recommended minimum size missing the space equivalent to a double bedroom or dining table for six people and a three seat sofa. (the benchmark for comparison is the London Plan space standards for a 2 storey, 3 bedroom home big enough for 5 people). 

Home buyers are rarely given the overall floor area in marketing information; which means consumers can often be left confused about the actual amount of space they are purchasing.

RIBA team members interview  members of the public and ask what they want from a home.
Photographer: MJ Heritage Photography

The ‘Bothered about Being Bottom’ Leeds event is part of HomeWise, a national housing campaign to improve Britain’s homes run by the RIBA.  Comments received from the Leeds event will be shared with the Future Homes Commission, a national inquiry that is currently developing recommendations for how houses should be designed and delivered in future. It will provide policy makers, house designers and builders much-needed consumer evidence to ensure that new homes are good quality and fit for modern households.

John Orrell, chair of RIBA Yorkshire Regional Council and founder member of the regional housing group said: ‘There is a pressing need to build more homes in our region and throughout the UK but we should make sure that they are the right types of homes.  The RIBA’s research revealed that many new homes are far smaller than recommended minimum standards and it is very disappointing that the Yorkshire and Humber region has the worst record in the country.

It is difficult to accept why families in our region have to settle for less. Factors that may influence the size and affordability of new homes, such as land values and planning restrictions are equally onerous, if not more so, in many other regions of the country – so it is time for people in our region to be ‘bothered about being bottom’ and demand better.’

John Orrell, RIBA Yorkshire Regional Chair is interviewed for BBC Look North
Photographer: MJ Heritage Photography

We had a fantastic day, speaking to individuals about what they think makes a good home. We also attracted the press! The story was covered on the BBC Website, as well as interviews on BBC Look North, BBC Radio Sheffield and BBC Radio Leeds.

Greg Hall, RIBA Marketing Manager is interviewed for BBC Radio Leeds
Photographer: MJ Heritage Photography

The HomeWise website which features a series of online resources to help people to ask the right questions when choosing a home is at www.behomewise.co.uk

RIBA Yorkshire visit York on their Architecture Forum roadshow

In 2012, RIBA Yorkshire are bringing their Regional Council meetings to its members. Each quarterly meeting is to be held in different parts of the region, each followed by a building visit and Architecture Forum discussing relevant topics. The second was held last night in York. 

After our Regional Council meeting (download meeting minutes here) Elizabeth Heaps, Pro-Vice Chancellor for Estates and Strategic Projects at University of York, Tony McGirk and Stephen Hill from BDP showed us round the buildings of the Heslington East Campus. Local Members were also invited to have an in depth back stage tour of the impressive department of Theatre, Film and Television.


Some photos can be seen below.

The Ron Cooke Hub

Elizabeth Heaps and local architects

The Theatre, Film and Television Centre

The interior of the television studio

Elizabeth and Tony then discussed their involvement in the project over a glass of wine.  

An audience of architects captivated by Elizabeth Heaps and Tony McGirk

Thanks to everyone who made this such a successful event.

Our next Forum will be held at the Hepworth, Wakefield on Wednesday 26 September. Oliver Ulmer, project Architect from Chipperfields will talk to us about his involvement in the project. We hope to see you there!

Thanks to James Mate, Doma Architects and Charlotte Harrison, Mass Architecture for their photographs.

4x4 making places: size matters!

Once again, 4x4 making places successfully brought people together to learn and debate place-making. For four evenings in March, a Chair, four speakers and an average of two hundred audience members from various disciplines investigated and debated numbers as the hidden force behind place-making on a range of themes including sustainability and community size, details and tolerances, how low energy housing really works, measures for use in consultation and post occupancy evaluation, the dark arts of valuation, how to measure quality, comparative costs and quality across national boundaries.

Speakers included Professors Wulf Daseking, Freiberg and Par Gustafsson from Swedish Landscape University, Dublin City Planner Dick Gleeson and public artist Gordon Young, alongside UK experts and practitioners from Renzo Piano, Proctor and Matthews, Surface and Riches Hawley Mikhail Architects. The themes for the four weeks were Big numbers at the country and regional scale, Middling numbers (town/city), Local numbers (neighbourhood/community) and Personal Digits looking at the home and streets scale. 

Week 1:  Ian Tod welcomes everyone to this years 4x4, CHAIR: Claire Morrow (Welcome to Yorkshire), SPEAKERS: Lindsay Smales (Leeds Metropolitan University Urban Design), Dick Gleeson (Dublin City Planner), Paul Simmons (Igloo), Stephen Hodder (Hodder and Partners)(no photo)

Week 2: CHAIR: Phil Crabtree (Leeds City Council) SPEAKERS: Gordon Young (artist), Will Matthews (Project Architect for the London Shard, Renzo Piano), Professor Wulf Daseking (Planner for Frieburg)

Week 3: CHAIR: Elizabeth Heaps (Pro-Vice Chancellor for Estates and Strategic Projects at University of York) SPEAKERS: John Thorp (Leeds Civic Architect), Richard Scott (Surface Architects), Simon Green (Sheffield City Council), Andrew Matthews (Proctor and Matthews)

Week 4: CHAIR: John Hocking (Joseph Rowntree Trust) SPEAKERS: Anna Scott-Marshall (RIBA), Annalie Riches (Riches Hawley Mikhail), Professor Fionn Stevenson (University of Sheffield) Professor Par Gustafsson (Swedish Landscape University, Lund)
Photographer MJHeritage Photography

debate!
Photographer MJHeritage Photography

Our fantastic audience
Photographer MJHeritage Photography

For more information on 4x4 making place please visit the website www.makingplaces.com 

Photographs of Week 4 were taken by MJHeritage Photography. All other photographs were taken by Rachel Hunnybun and Ruth Donnelly of RIBA Yorkshire