London, England, United Kingdom
I am a passionate urbanist with over 18 years working experience in the built environment. I am a director of Urban Initiatives Studio - an innovative urban design and planning consultancy based in London. I have worked on urban strategies, regeneration schemes, masterplanning and urban design projects and architectural projects throughout the United Kingdom and Europe. One of my specialism is planning for tall buildings both on a strategic scale for Local Authority clients and as advisor to developers. I am a member of the Urban Design Group and a visiting lecturer for urban design at the Bartlett School of Planning. I have been trained as an architect and urban designer, and also hold a town planning degree from the London School of Economics.
150 Holborn, London EC1N 2NS 150 Holborn, London EC1N 2NS Urban Initiatives is an internationally recognised urban design and planning consultancy based in London. We work across the full urban spectrum: from strategic thinking at the wider city, town and district level to the development of specific urban design solutions at neighbourhood, block, street and building scales. Our work extends across major cities and towns in the UK, Ireland, Europe, and beyond. In 2024 Urban Initiatives became part of the Sidara Collaborative, a network of specialist firms uniquely positioned to address major global challenges. As part of Sidara, Urban Initiatives can offer enhanced support to our clients in response to rapid change and increasing complexity. While each firm maintains its distinct identity and culture, they are united by the shared purpose and values of Sidara.
Urban Initiatives Studio was established in October 2012 following a restructuring of Urban Initiatives and specialises in the design and planning of urban change and development. I am one of the founding directors. Urban Initiatives Studio provides a unique urban design and planning consultancy services for some of the best urban development and regeneration projects throughout Britain and beyond. We have an experienced team of urban designers, architects, town planners and development experts and work collaboratively with our clients, other urban professionals and the community in a consensus-driven approach, to ensure quality and sustainable outcomes. Our approach is innovative and challenging. We see the bigger picture, think long term and always add value to our client’s projects. In 2014 Urban Initiatives Studio was awarded the prestigious Urban Design Group Practice Award for our Middlehaven Regeneration Project in Middlesbrough.
2008 Senior Associate Urban Design 2006 Associate Urban Design 2005 Managing Consultant 2003 Urban Design Consultant At Urban Initiatives I have been responsible for the design and management of numerous urban design and masterplanning projects, of both large and small scales, throughout the UK, Ireland and Europe. My experience covers city centre development frameworks (Notting Hill Gate, Norwich St Stephens Quarter), regeneration projects (Chapel Street Salford, Stratford Metropolitan Masterplan), estate renewal (Notting Barns North Kensington), brownfield re-development (Klovermarken Copenhagen, 3,000 homes for Purfleet/Thames Gateway), campus planning (University Salford, University College Cork), transport interchange masterplanning (Chorlton Street Manchester, Luxembourg Central Station) and building heights and tall buildings studies (Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, Dun Laoghaire County/ Dublin, the City of Bath and Belfast). I have also been leading a delivery-focused masterplan in Middelsbrough that pioneers a bottom-up approach to implementation focusing on attracting a multitude of small scale developments.
Maccreanor Lavington is an architecture practice with offices in London and Rotterdam, whose portfolio range from individual buildings to large scale urban design projects. In my role as architectural designer as part of a wider team I worked from concept design to tender stage on various projects in The Netherlands, Ireland and the United Kingdom. In the London office I was responsible for façade design and typical layouts for 34 family houses of the Stirling Prize winning Accordia Scheme in Cambridge. During my time the Netherlands I worked on a housing project of 182 dwellings at Berkel en Rodenrijs near Rotterdam and a detached large family home in Glenavy, Northern Ireland.
1999 - 2001 Institute of Building Theory and Design - Housing, Prof. Carsten Lorenzen 1997 - 1998 Teaching-Assistant at Institute of Fundamentals of Creation and Representation, Professor Wolff U. Weder