People & practice
‘We’ve done a great deal’
NEW PRACTICES
How has DCfW’s role evolved since it was set up? The design review service was refined in structure and frequency in 2005 and again in 2008-9. We later devised the design exchange supplementary service for local planning authorities to discuss the challenges they face in securing design quality. These sessions have no fixed agenda. They can be geared towards simply getting to know us better, or to look at projects, or to examine the barriers they experience and how we can help address them. They may simply examine earlier decisions. We’ve worked hard to establish continuous engagement and often see projects several times. Where has the organisation had its biggest impact? We’ve helped much more broadly than at a scheme-by-scheme level. We aim to build confidence and capacity, to help inform policy and its application. Particularly rewarding have been practices who told us our advice was vital to the success of their project, and members of the public who have found our expertise invaluable.
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What do you think DCfW could have done better? Perhaps to have secured a public face – on the street, as it were, very early on. If we started over, we’d still take an urban design-led and multidisciplinary approach, rather than a purely architectural approach. We’ve done a great deal with very lean resources and stayed flexible and light on our feet, so we’re not uncomfortable with what we’ve done. Can design review reach ‘local level’ and how will DCfW go about delivering it? Wales is a small country and much of our work is local by nature. We have always accommodated grass roots projects, assisted individuals, groups and members of the public and will continue to do so. Do you think you do anything better than CABE? We don’t compare ourselves with other organisations of different size and capacity, working in a different context. While some could view our size and resources as a disadvantage, we always have the advantage of flexibility and the ability to be fleet of foot, combining proactive services with the capacity for swift response. What is the best building to have been built in Wales over the past 10 years? Pat Borer and David Lea’s Wales Institute for Sustainable Education at the Centre for Alternative Technology in Machynlleth. No question.
BRIDGER CARR (WORK UNDERTAKEN AT HDP)
Alan Francis, chairman of the Design Commission for Wales, looks back at the first 10 years of the fleet-of-foot ‘Welsh CABE’
Bridger Carr Architects Andy Bridger, Deborah Carr Leeds, West Yorkshire May 2012 www.bridgercarr.com Where have you come from? We’ve been delivering healthcare projects together for the past six years, at HDP in Shipley. Before that Andy was at Studio BAAD in Hebden Bridge and Nightingale Associates. Deborah worked for Halliday Clark Architects for her Part I and did her Part 3 with HDP. What work do you have and what kind of projects are you looking for? Approved consultants frameworks are our mainstay, such as Bradford and Airedale Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust framework. We’re also looking to diversify into sectors which require a high level of complex design coordination, such as research and development facilities.
What are your ambitions? Something big and complex, like a hospital, airport or a power station would be fantastic. How optimistic are you as a start-up practice? The RIBA Small Practice Spring Cleaning event in York at the end of April gave us a great kick start at just the right time. Our clients’ encouragement has been our biggest spur. We’ve had interest in our specialist healthcare consultancy service and a renewed willingness from clients to discuss their capital expenditure plans – all indicative of a shift in spending attitudes. We’ve made a lot of strategic decisions about expenditure. We’re staying as compact as possible, using innovative technologies to keep us lean. ..