Once viewed as a rewarding and respected profession, architecture in the UK is now increasingly defined by diminishing fees, increased costs, more liability, rising risk, and a growing disconnect between architects and the institutions that represent them. Behind our professional body’s glitz of awards ceremonies, revamped headquarters and pledges, a deeper crisis is unfolding, one that is a slow and continual erosion of the profession’s value and viability.

For decades, architecture offered the promise of meaningful, creative and rewarding work that shaped public life. But many architects now report a very different reality: mounting stress, diminishing margins, unpaid work, and regulatory burdens and liabilities that grow heavier each year.

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