Experiencing a Career in Architecture
Ryder hosted a four day programme in Newcastle for local students of Jesmond Park Academy as part of a pilot for a new work experience format, delivered in partnership with Newcastle United Foundation and PlanBEE sponsors.
From 15 to 18 July, we welcomed twenty students from Jesmond Park Academy to Cooper’s Studios in Newcastle. The purpose of the work experience programme is to give young people an insight into the industry, experience a range of disciplines and raise awareness of the opportunities for young people to establish a career in the built environment through pathways such as PlanBEE.
In addition to workshops with our landscapes, interiors, and architectural teams, engineering company Black & White, and consultants Cundall joined us to provide the students with a more holistic understanding of the built environment.
Coordinated by Dr Izzy Williams and Jessica Goodwin, students completed a project brief to design a Home of the Future. Working in teams, they completed a precedent study before writing their own project brief, a site analysis and developed a spatial concept, before creating 3D models in SketchUp and starting their building design. They created a landscape masterplan for their projects, considered net zero and sustainability initiatives, explored different methods of construction, façades and materials, interior designs and produced floor plans of their designs.
At the end of the week, students showcased their work in a design exhibition to each other and programme contributors in a design exhibition. Adding a competitive edge, each team’s design was reviewed by industry experts on their ability to meet the brief, their engagement across disciplines, integration of new knowledge, and teamwork.
The winners were Group 3 with their House of the Future. Their design considered the development of a housing estate that focussed on promoting a sense of community and incorporated sustainable elements including renewable energy resources, green space, and recycled materials. They utilised software tools including Vizcom and SketchUp to generate visualisations of their design and presented their design with confidence.
It was a successful week and the students engaged well throughout. We were very impressed by the ideas that went into each of their designs, and how each team incorporated their new learnings.
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