Group includes senior figures from practice, education and regulation, and will develop industry-wide recommendations on wellbeing, pay and working hours
A new RIBA taskforce has held its first meeting to address working conditions in UK architectural practices, following findings from the institute’s recent Workplace Conditions and Wellbeing Report.
Chaired by RIBA President Muyiwa Oki, the Presidential Taskforce on Workplace Wellbeing met on 11 June and brings together senior figures from practice, academia and regulation. It will develop practical guidance and recommendations focused on work-life balance, pay equity, inclusive workplace cultures and sustainable business practices.
Oki said the initiative “is about the future competitiveness of the architecture profession”, adding, “Architects across the UK are telling us the same thing, the current culture is not working. It’s time to take action and build a profession that values people as much as projects.”
He added: “Workplace wellbeing is more than a nice-to-have. It’s essential to the survival and success of architecture.”
The group seeks to respond to concerns highlighted in the RIBA’s survey, which indicated widespread dissatisfaction with pay, long hours and poor work-life balance in registered practices. According to the RIBA, the taskforce’s next phase will include “evidence sessions, discovery workshops, and engagement with experts”.
A national call for evidence is planned in the coming months, which aims to identify practices with constructive workplace cultures and gather insights from their experiences. The group’s recommendations are intended to be scalable and applicable to practices of all sizes and across different regions.
The taskforce members are Alastair Blyth, from the University of Westminster; Karen Mosley, a director at HLM Architects; Muyiwa Oki (Chair), RIBA president; Julia Simet, from Gensler; Hugh Simpson, CEO of the Architects Registration Board; Su Stringfellow, director at Harrison Stringfellow Architects; Andrew Thomas, managing partner of Grimshaw’s London studios; and Rion Willard, architect and architecture business consultant.
The taskforce is part of a broader RIBA initiative to address systemic workplace issues across the profession. Its work is intended to contribute to long-term improvements in employment practices and professional culture, with the aim of making architectural workplaces more equitable, sustainable and, in the words of RIBA President Muyiwa Oki, “decent and dynamic.”
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