At Archio, we imagine a better quality of life for everyone. We think that access to decent homes, buildings and spaces provides the foundation to help us grow as individuals and as communities.

We were founded with a mindset that design should be used to tackle major societal challenges. We seek out opportunities to progressively shape a better, more sustainable and more inclusive world for now, and for future generations.

We listen and respond to the everyday issues people face in their neighbourhoods, because we recognise that good design can have a transformative impact on physical and emotional health.

We believe that regeneration is most effective when design teams, councils and local communities co-produce visionary approaches that enrich lives. We are focused on working with purpose-led clients who have a long-term interest in the vitality of the communities they operate in. This approach has developed into a specialism of working with local authority regeneration companies, housing associations, select private developers and community-led organisations.

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“I have been a resident on Brasted Close for nearly 11 years, and have been very impressed by the designs put forward by Archio who have listened to residents’ concerns every step of the way. It is an amazing opportunity to be part of the steering committee of such a pioneering project. The final design is very impressive, it feels spacious, without being over bearing to the surrounding estate.” 

Katy Milner, Brasted Close Resident

"Through careful negotiation with the planners, the architect has achieved a scheme which draws on the historic morphology and detail of the village, interpreting traditional form and fenestration to create a unique and innovative response."

RIBA Judges citation for Temple Cloud

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People

Kyle Buchanan

Kyle Buchanan

Kyle is a Director at Archio and a passionate and skilled Architect, who was named RIBA South West Project Architect of the Year 2018. He is an RIBA Conservation Registrant with experience of working on Listed Buildings and in heritage contexts. His expertise in housing design has resulted in his appointment as a member of the RIBA Expert Advisory Group for Housing and as a Design Council Expert.

He pursues his passion for promoting outstanding design through his positions on Ealing, Kingston and Sutton Design Review Panels. He is an experienced design tutor and has run design units for undergraduate and postgraduate architecture courses at the Bartlett as well as being a visiting critic at schools including London Met, Cambridge and Oxford Brookes. 

Kyle has pursued his interest in working with communities by volunteering on the boards of community led-housing groups and local charities in London. He is currently a volunteer member of the Housing Ombudsman’s Resident Panel.

Mellis Haward

Mellis Haward

Mellis is a Director at Archio, and has led many of Archio's housing and community projects.

With her expertise in Urban Design, Listed Buildings and Planning Policy, she is a member of the Harrow, Hounslow and Tower Hamlets Design Panels, and the Hackney Regeneration Design Advisory Group, advising the councils on current applications and policy in the borough. She is also an AJ Architects Award Judge, Civic Trust Awards Assessor, a member of the Urban Design London Environmental Design Review Panel and a Design Council Specialist Expert.

Mellis has a particular interest in community engagement and has an expertise in running participatory design workshops, and along with Kyle, she was recognised in the Architect's Journal 40 under 40 list "celebrating the UK’s most exciting emerging architectural talent".

Within Archio, Mellis oversees the practice's internal management, with a focus on structured resourcing and wellbeing of the team. 

James Purkiss

James Purkiss

James joined Archio in 2019 having graduated from the Bartlett, University College London, with a first class honours degree and a nomination for the RIBA Bronze Medal. He went on to complete his post-graduate studies at the University of Cambridge where he pursued a specialism in environmental design. 

James is Archio's Sustainability lead, having been Passivhaus trained and authoring our in-house Sustainability Briefing document. James became an Associate in Archio in 2022, and is leading our co-housing projects with TOWN and Squeezed London.

A passionate teacher, James has run workshops with primary school pupils and tree-house building sessions at a local youth centre. He has been an invited critic at a number of architecture schools and was a studio tutor at the Bartlett School of Architecture.

João Sá

João Sá

João joined Archio in 2020 with practice experience spanning several countries, Portugal, Japan and the UK, where he has spent the last 8 years. João graduated with a Masters degree from the Faculty of Architecture, University of Porto (FAUP), Portugal, and started out working in Japan before moving to Portugal to work for architects Barbosa e Guimarães.

João has a passion for construction and all things technical, and is currently leading on projects for Southwark Council and London CLT in the detailed and construction phases.

João became an Associate at Archio in 2022, having led our Quality Management Systems, including achieving our ISO9001 accreditation.

Emma Bennett

Emma Bennett

Emma joined Archio as a Senior Architect in 2024.

She qualified in 2020 after completing her Part 3 studies at the University of Westminster. She also studied at ESALA, University of Edinburgh, where she obtained both her Part 1 and Part 2 degrees, including several ESALA prizes for a collective proposal to re-home people displaced by the restoration of Old Havana, Cuba.

Before joining Archio, Emma worked at Pollard Thomas Edwards for five years. Here she developed her expertise in housing design, with experience varying across strategic masterplans, infill sites for local authorities and technical detailing for construction-stage projects. A meticulous and thoughtful designer, she enjoys and is equally skilled in all stages of the design process. 

Anna Mason

Anna Mason

Anna joined Archio at the start of 2024 after completing her Part 3 diploma at the University of Westminster in 2023. 

She previously studied at the University of Nottingham and London Metropolitan University, where she pursued an interest in alternative models of housing through an additional MA in Urban Design. As part of this she researched and wrote on the importance of meaningful co-design and democratic project processes. 

Having worked across a number of different typologies Anna is a versatile designer; from large mixed-use developments at Wilkinson Eyre Architects to affordable housing neighbourhoods at Karakusevic Carson Architects. She has also worked on low-energy retrofit and re-use schemes at both Buckley Gray Yeoman and R2 Studio Architects.

Sarah Ahmed

Sarah Ahmed

Sarah joined Archio as an architectural assistant in 2021. She is a graduate of University College Dublin where she obtained her Masters degree in Architecture in 2019. Since, she has worked on a number of housing and masterplanning projects for Plus Architecture in Dublin and co founded the Sudan Art and Design Library Project where she is currently head of research.

Her interests in architectural design lie in the exploration of culture in the everyday and of larger definitions of identity and heritage especially when it pertains to community development.

Sarah believes in the inherent potential present in a multidisciplinary approach to being a good designer and, as an avid photographer and artist, is passionate about using these tools for good place making.

Claire Fitzpatrick

Claire Fitzpatrick

Claire joined Archio as an architectural assistant in 2023. She studied both Part 1 and Part 2 at Dublin Institute of Technology and previously worked for McGarry Ní Éanaigh Architects in Dublin. Here, she gained valuable experience across a range of public projects, particularly in education and community buildings.

 

Claire combines her interest in community housing with a passion for thoughtful design. Since joining Archio, she has been involved in a Community Land Trust project, which includes three sites across Greenwich.

Sharon Lamunu

Sharon Lamunu

Sharon joined Archio in 2024 as the part-time studio manager, and has worked in design, music and tech industries for years. In her position as studio manager she overseas, supports and manages daily operations

With a background in design, she also understands the positive impact great design and architecture can have on communities.

Selected Clients

Ballymore
Bath & Stratford Homes
Be First (London Borough of Barking and Dagenham)
Brick by Brick (London Borough of Croydon)
Clarion Housing Association
Crystal Palace Community Land Trust
Dolphins Hall Trust
Habinteg Housing Association
Hornsey Housing Trust
Human Nature
London Borough of Havering
London Borough of Hounslow
London Borough of Southwark
London Community Land Trust
London Continental Railways
London Legacy Development Corporation
Metropolitan Thames Valley Housing
Notting Hill Genesis
Phoenix Community Housing
Royal Institute of British Architects
Ruskin Mill Educational Trust
Squeezed London
The Architectural Association
The Greenwich Citizens Housing Group
TOWN
Transport for London

Awards

2024

London Community Land Trust

Highly Commended, MacEwan Award

2023

Becontree Avenue

Winner, Brick Awards, Small Housing Development

London Community Land Trust

Winner, British Homes Awards Best Affordable Housing

Winner, NLA New London Award (Housing)

Winner, Pineapples Award (Community Engagement)

Short-listed, Housing, Architects Journal Awards

Short-listed, Housing Design Award

Winner, Building London Planning Awards (Best Community Engagement Outcomes)

Short-listed, Building London Planning Awards (Best New Place to Live)

Short-listed, Civic Trust Awards

Short-listed, Inside Housing Development Awards (Best development - 0-100 homes)

Winner, British Homes Awards Judges Award for Excellence

2022

Astley Estate

Short-listed, Housing Design Awards

Winner, Inside Housing Development Awards (Best affordable housing development - less than £10m)

Becontree Avenue

Winner, Housing, Architects Journal Awards

Winner, Critics Choice, Architects Journal Awards

Short-listed, Building Design, Public and Social Housing Architect of the Year

2021

London Community Land Trust

Short-listed, Open City Stewardship Awards, Social Stewardship Award

2020

Winner, Architects Journal 40 under 40

2019

London Community Land Trust

Winner, Inside Housing Development Awards (Best affordable housing development)

Short-listed, NLA New London Award (Housing)

Short-listed, Housing Design Awards

2018

Temple Gardens

Short-listed, AJ Housing Project of the Year (up to £10 million)

Winner, RIBA South West Project Architect of the Year

Winner, RIBA South West Regional Award

2017

Winner, Archiboo Web Awards, Best Written Content

2016

Suffolk Square

Commendation, Civic Award

Short-listed, Archiboo Web Awards, Best Written Content

Short-listed, BD Young Architect of the Year Award

2015

Flower Kiosk

Short-listed, Wood Awards

2014

Flower Kiosk

Short-listed, Galvanizing Awards

Runner-up, AJ Small Projects Awards

Contact

Unit B107
Lighthouse Studios
89a Shacklewell Lane
London E8 2EB
T 020 7183 4048
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Mailing List

We send out occasional informative emails about housing, community engagement and the ‘future of living’. Click on this link if you’d like to sign up to receive them!

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