All Social value articles
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Features
The future faces of UK architecture
Mary Richardson meets three young alumni of Beyond the Box who share, in their own words, how the initiative shaped their paths into architecture
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News
Youth-designed pavilion unveiled in Camden’s HS2 meanwhile garden
The six-metre-tall pavilion and performance space, ‘Reflect’, was co-designed by young people in collaboration with social enterprise MATT+FIONA and Fitzrovia Youth in Action
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Features
Jan Kattein: architect as catalyst – ‘A transformational impact can be achieved with limited means’
As Jan Kattein Architects unveils its latest project at Westminster’s Church Street Triangle, Mary Richardson takes a closer look at the work of this innovative firm that weaves social practice into its inspiring and colourful placemaking
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Opinion
A failure of planning? The uncertain fate of Birmingham’s historic markets
Despite eight centuries of history, Birmingham’s markets are being sidelined in the city’s latest redevelopment plans – with traders facing an uncertain future and no clear strategy for continuity, writes Joe Holyoak
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Opinion
Why the key to reviving our towns is people-centred regeneration
It is time for the government to focus on ‘thriving towns for a revived nation’ writes Ben Derbyshire
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Opinion
No demolition, no compromise: Civic Square’s radical approach to the future of urbanism
In Birmingham’s Ladywood, Civic Square is championing a radical, community-led approach to urbanism, writes Joe Holyoak
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Opinion
WA100 2025: Western Europe leads on net zero
This year Gensler, the world’s biggest practice, saw the number of architects it employs drop below the 3,000 mark, the milestone which it broke through in 2023. The second-placed firm, Arcadis, also saw numbers fall. But these drops mean little when measured against the wider profession; our ...
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Features
Dian Small: embracing her new role as mentor and disruptor
Dian Small speaks to Mary Richardson about her new role at the London School of Architecture and its potential to drive change for underrepresented practitioners
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Building Study
Compact living, big impact: Dovehouse Court’s lesson in sustainability and community
Designed by Mole Architects, Dovehouse Court is the UK’s first Passivhaus-certified almshouse scheme
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Opinion
Putting children and young people at the heart of housing design
Dinah Bornat explores how housing design can better meet the needs of younger generations
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Features
Closing the skills gap: Alison Watson on transforming built environment education
Alison Watson MBE is a woman on a mission to transform education in the built environment
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News
Chief Medical Officer’s report calls for active travel, improved housing, and cleaner air in cities
The annual report highlights how urban environments impact health
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News
London School of Architecture launches new programme to support under-represented practices
Fully funded one-year pilot programme will provide mentorship, business development, and practical learning opportunities
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News
Taskforce calls for cross-departmental unit to lead national older people’s housing strategy
Wide-ranging paper also calls for planning presumption in favour of later living housing and requirements on Homes England to support its expansion
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News
School closures threaten London’s future as a city for families
Soho Parish Primary School’s financial struggles reflect wider demographic trends, including declining birth rates, post-Brexit migration, and the long-term impact of Covid-19, challenging the city’s multigenerational identity
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Features
Beyond the Box: delivering real social value in the built environment
For the latest in BD’s Boomers to Zoomers series, Mary Richardson talked to Neil Onions, head of Beyond the Box, a social enterprise with a reputation for finding innovative ways to empower underrepresented young people within the built-environment sector
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Features
‘Because the spaces work for children, they work for everyone’ – how the Whittington estate fosters a community for all ages
Mary Richardson talks to two architects who have made a film about the child-friendly estate where they live, to find out what’s so special about its design
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Opinion
Creating places and spaces where children and young people thrive
Gemma Hyde explains how the TCPA and its partners in the built environment sector have been working to reclaim space for children and young people
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Features
A crisis hiding in plain sight: how the UK’s built environment is failing children and young people
While housing supply and affordability dominate public debate, the lack of safe, accessible spaces for children and adolescents is a critical yet overlooked issue. Nora Redmond takes a closer look at why the built environment has left young people so underserved
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News
Barr Gazetas earns highest B Corp rating for a UK architecture practice
Barr Gazetas joins a growing community of businesses championing environmental and social responsibility