Britain must resist the temptation to design out human interaction in its rush to build a covid-proof future, architects are warning.

The need to reshape workplaces and other parts of the built environment to enable social distancing carries a risk of creating places that are so sterile they are joyless and inhuman, said Tim Gledstone, a partner at Squire & Partners.

Architects’ expertise should be harnessed because they have the skills to help businesses, schools and communities return to life safely, the RIBA’s chief executive Alan Vallance said as the institute launched an ideas competition for a post-pandemic world.

Lockdown is giving the nation the chance to think about “what really matters to us and to the world we live in” before rushing into decisions, added Kirsten Lees, managing partner at Grimshaw.

…