The IHBC has welcomed the opportunity to help shape the future of architecture, responding to the Housing Minister’s query on ‘what could be improved’ in regulating architects with a call ‘to put conservation at the heart of the architectural profession.’
… doing all we can to put conservation at the heart of the architectural profession today is surely the least we can do to help conserve our planet…
IHBC Chair David McDonald said: ‘The IHBC is delighted that we have here a real opportunity to shape the future of our places and secure better practice in a profession central their management: architecture.’
‘In the consultation foreword the Minister asks ‘what is working well, what could be improved and what could be reformed.’
‘Well, the IHBC is absolutely clear that conservation must be formally embedded as a genuine core competence within the profession – not the nod, top-up, or afterthought that it can be today. And we will push this key message to the consultation across all our platforms and networks.’
‘The opportunity comes at the same time the IPCC has issued its most urgent – and most targeted – report. So, doing all we can to put conservation at the heart of the architectural profession today is surely the least we can do to help conserve our planet.’
…This call for evidence constitutes the first part of that process by gathering the views of the architectural sector on their experiences of what is working well and what can be improved…
The Minister for Housing writes in the foreword to the Call for Evidence:
The United Kingdom’s architectural sector is one of the best in the world – with first-class educational institutions, world-leading practices and a healthy export market. The United Kingdom also has a vibrant small and medium sized enterprise (SME) sector who operate at local level to ensure that the places where we live, work and play suit our communities.
The challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the importance of putting placemaking at the heart of design, ensuring that we build communities where people can truly thrive and succeed. Our ambition to reach Net Zero carbon by 2050 has furthered the need to embed sustainability into design principles when considering our approach to the built environment.
In conjunction to the challenges we face, we must also heed the whole system of Building Safety issues which have been exposed and to fundamentally ensure that regulation protects the public. For levelling-up to become a reality we must make sure that the profession is inclusive and progressive, which will be vital as we start to deliver the much-needed homes and infrastructure the country needs.
To achieve this vision, we want the profession and the sector to be forward looking, diverse and innovative, challenging the way we think about the built environment and moving the whole country forward through better design. We must ensure that our architectural sector remains world leading as we rise to meet these challenges and we want to make sure that government provides suitable support to achieve that ambition.
The time is right to have a bigger and longer-term focused conversation with the architectural sector about the purpose of regulation and government policy in this sector and how they could be improved to deliver a modern, innovative, accessible and diverse profession that delivers better, greener and safer design and construction in the built environment.
We want to identify opportunities to improve and develop the current regulatory framework so it better supports the development and growth of the profession, enhances quality within the sector and is focused on outcomes.
This is a view shared by the Architects Registration Board. Their support in undertaking this Review is welcome.
This call for evidence constitutes the first part of that process by gathering the views of the architectural sector on their experiences of what is working well and what can be improved. It will explore regulation, areas for innovation and whether the architectural profession is inclusive. Of course, any amendments to architectural regulation will also affect the wider architectural and construction sector.
We want to hear from anyone who works in design, construction or academia and the implications that this may have for your fields.
See the consultation call for evidence on GOV.UK.
See the consultation
For more background see GOV.UK
