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 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. 

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.

In 2024 João qualified as a PassiveHaus Designer.

Katie Sexton

Katie joined Archio in 2024, following several years of experience within the industry, resulting in her becoming an Associate Member of the Chartered Insitute of Marketing. During this time, she honed her skills and developed a deep understanding of the architectural and marketing sectors, which she now brings to her role at Archio. Katie plays a key part in supporting the practice, primarily through her responsibilities in marketing and studio operations.

Beyond her professional expertise, Katie is also trained as a mental health responder, first aider, and fire warden, ensuring the team’s well-being and safety.

Emma Bennett

Emma 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. 

Emma is a member of the Twentieth Society Youth Steering Group and has published her writing on architecture and heritage in their journals.

Simon Metstead

Simon is an experienced architect who is passionate about both social and environmental sustainability. Before joining Archio he has developed an expertise working on the design and delivery of housing, education and public sector projects at Curl la Tourelle Head Architecture and Weston Williamson + Partners.

He qualified as a Passivhaus Designer in 2021 and brings this knowledge as a starting point for all design challenges, he also has experience in bio-based construction having spent 6 months building a straw-bale house using clay based plaster and adobe flooring. He is keen to incorporate low embodied carbon construction materials and utilise low operational carbon design wherever possible, to make efficient spaces that benefit both the health of the occupier and the planet as a whole.

In addition to his practice work, Simon also leads design tutorials and reviews as an Associate Lecturer and visiting tutor, utilising conceptual academic projects as a testing bed to help generate new and innovative ideas.

Matt Fallowfield

Matt's studies have included the University of East London, the University of Cambridge, and Westminster University where he qualified as an Architect in 2019. His MPhil research project, ‘Baugruppen London’ explored how a German group-led housing model could be translated to London through a Community Land Trust and included 6 months of community-based fieldwork in Berlin and London.

Matt’s professional experience has included 7 years at Morris+Company working on diverse housing projects including student living, co-living, housing for the homeless, and specialist housing for adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Matt has also gained significant technical and construction experience by leading on sustainable retro-fit workplace projects and designing complex engineered timber community and education schemes.

Anna Mason

Anna completed 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.

Renata Bruni

Renata joined Archio team in 2023 as a part time Finance Manager. She has over 20 years of experience managing and heading finance in architectural practices. She worked at Barr Gazetas for 18 years and overseen a growth of the practice from 15 to 50 + team members. She also manages finance at Landolt and Brown Ltd and Granit Architects and Interiors. She is a member of AFMG (Architects Finance Management Group).

Renata has an extensive understanding of architectural world and shares the passion for building design and interior aesthetics

Saaya Kamita

Saaya joined Archio in 2021 as a part-time Studio Manager, bringing with her six years of experience in the design industry across London. In her role, she oversees, supports, and manages the daily operations of the studio, ensuring smooth workflow across the practice. Her organisational skills and industry insight make her an integral part of the practice.

Since having two children, she has become more aware of the importance the community brings and how architecture has a power to shape the neighborhood. Saaya has masters in Textiles and enjoys crafting and knitting.