Architecture

Paul Wright joined Woods Hardwick as an Associate in our Residential Architecture team in August 2021.
A RIBA Chartered Architect with experience working both in practice and for a residential developer, Paul shares more about his role and why a career in architecture is so rewarding.

In opening a new office in central London, we are building on more than 25 years working in the capital. From high end retail to world-renowned restaurants, our architects and planners have worked with a range of clients and consultants to breathe new life into industries that have had to work hard to come back stronger and better than ever following the events of the last couple of years!
One of our finest projects of the last year is arguably one of the biggest restaurant openings in the last few years! Introducing The MAINE, Mayfair!

Last night our London team, together with clients and fellow consultants, officially celebrated the launch of our new office in the capital! The venue, the wonderfully eclectic Gargotte at Lab Woolfe, on Fitzrovia’s Percy Street, was the perfect setting for the launch party.
Opening a new office in London after the events of the last year is testimony to the ambition, skill and knowledge of Woods Hardwick’s growing team and client base - and this a sentiment clearly shared last night.

Planning Director Russell Gray attended Day One of the Built Environment Networking’s Oxford-Cambridge Arc Conference. 
The feeling in the room was clear from the start - a real concern of political inertia at the national level; that the Government is no longer as committed to the Arc, with the lack of any mention in the recent Comprehensive Spending Review evidence of this.

Over the past decade, Birmingham has seen a surge in development and investment, with focus on the regeneration of key city centre sites. 
This has seen new residential communities formed in the central area alongside retail, business and cultural destinations. 

On Tuesday 14 September, our Planning Director Paul Woods, chaired a session at the Built Environment Networking’s Midlands Development conference, hosted at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
This was one of the BEN’s first hybrid events, with around 150 people in attendance in person, with another 80 viewing online. 

This week the Centre for the New Midlands announced the first appointments to their Housing and Communities Leadership Board. Woods Hardwick’s Birmingham Planning Director, Paul Woods, is delighted to be one of the inaugural Board members. 
The Board, to be chaired by Dr Halima Sacranie (Research Lead, Housing and Communities Research Group at the University of Birmingham), will be responsible for shaping the Centre for the New Midlands’ work across this hugely important area of public policy.

In a Government consultation running until 12 October, people across Oxford and Cambridge Arc have the opportunity to contribute to the long-term development of our area.
The outcomes of the consultation will help to shape and enhance the infrastructure, environment and new developments in the counties of Oxfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Northamptonshire, Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire. The plan will be developed by Government, informed by engagement with local communities and stakeholders, and will have sustainability at its core.

Back in January 2020, Woods Hardwick’s architects and engineers secured outline planning permission for Denison Investments for a site off Yelnow Lane, Sharnbrook, a highly desirable village location situated in North Bedfordshire.
Through our existing knowledge and experience of the site, the Woods Hardwick’s architectural team continued to support the site’s developer, Dandara Ltd, in successfully securing planning permission for the subsequent reserved matters application for 51 family homes.