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On Saturday 22nd February, we delivered our fifth design session of the programme with 24 young people from across the Northwest to contribute insights and ideas towards student accommodation. The session focused on better understanding young people’s priorities between retrofitting or designing a new building for a hypothetical site with Gold Sponsor Rider Levett Bucknall.

The workshop emphasised understanding young people/future students’ wants and needs, including their preferred build type, building needs (social spaces, workspaces, etc), essential facilities (near stations, cafes, amenities), and how to build a sense of ownership within a temporary space.

Groups created mood boards and sketches, particularly focusing on the ground and first-floor layouts, which prioritised the arrangement of distinct communal and independent spaces to reflect each area’s function. Each group shared their proposal with the supporting professionals and their peers, receiving feedback and insights from the RLB supporting staff.

We had imaginative, thoughtful and socially aware proposals from each group with a strong preference for retrofitting existing buildings rather than new construction. This was driven by historical preservation, sustainability and cost effectiveness. Whilst preserving the historical exterior, there was a desire from some for modern and updated interiors. With open-plan layouts, light and bright spaces and a mix of warm but modern materials and original artworks. They wanted to see a variety of communal spaces to help foster a sense of community and provide areas for different activities. Ensuring the building is accessible and safe for everyone was another important want from the young people.

Huge thank you to RLB for hosting and generously providing lunch, and to Tegan Lewis, Amy Le Vasseur & Tyrone Jackson for their support and feedback on the young people’s ideas throughout the session.

On Wednesday 9th October, we held our second skills session on photographing architectural models which took place in the School of Architecture at the University of Liverpool.

This workshop aimed to demonstrate to the young people that documenting their work doesn’t have to be difficult or expensive, they can use their camera phones, everyday materials and lighting to create professional images that will show off their models for any portfolio.

We kicked off the workshop by asking the young people to make quick and fun ‘cut and slot models’ by cutting out various shapes from cardboard. They then had to slot their combination of shapes together until they were happy with the model they’d produced. In groups, they then set up DIY photography studios by attaching a large piece of white paper to the top and bottom of their set-up, allowing it to curve in the centre. Once their models and studios were set up we took them through some photography tips, introducing them to the importance of composition and the impact exposure can have on an image.

We showed them how to set up a grid on their camera phones, and discussed the rule of thirds and how leading lines can help their compositions throughout the Academy and beyond. They had a lot of fun experimenting with lighting too! We challenged the young people to experiment with different light sources, how they could use first and secondary light sources, how they could reflect light, how to create soft and harsh shadows and what impact that had on their pictures.

They produced a wide variety of images and seemed keen to learn more about the editing process too. It was great to see the young people working in teams with the role of director shifting depending on whose model was being photographed. They all helped each other to achieve the images each of them wanted to produce.

A huge thank you to Alex Williams, Director of Willma Works for her support and encouragement of the young people’s models and photographs throughout the session. Thank you to Lucretia Ray and The School of Architecture of The University of Liverpool.

On Saturday 27th April, we delivered our final design session of the year with Gold sponsors Planit-IE and long-term sponsors Buttress. This session focused on creating a new public garden as part of the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. We kicked off the session by meeting at the cathedral steps, where we were given a rundown on the history of the cathedral and the ambition of the project by Matthew Burl, Director at Buttress and Danny Marsh, Studio Director at Planit-IE. We then split into two groups, one led by Matthew and the other led by Danny.

The young people were taken around the site where they asked questions, made notes, took photographs and better understood the location they’d later be designing for. Once back at Planit-IE’s workspace, the young designers were given the full scope of the brief which tasked them all to redesign the rear entrance of the cathedral, to make the journey to and from the garden space more appealing with more greening, better signage and intuitive wayfinding.

They were then split into three groups and asked to choose one of the following themes: Biodiversity, Health &Wellbeing and Socials & Events. Once their briefs were chosen, they began brainstorming and master planning. Each group had to communicate their design ideas through a 3D model with drawings and collages as embellishments. The social &events team created a beautiful and flexible garden space, where the cathedral, local businesses and the community could host large and small events throughout the year. They imaged trailing green walls to attract attention to the green oasis above as well as outlining a mosaic as a centrepiece that reflects the colours of the cathedral’s stained glass.

The biodiversity team intelligently contrasted the cathedral’s hard lines with soft curved green spaces with wild grasses and a butterfly farm as well as seating areas on the sides of the garden to attract visitors and soften the edges of the garden space.

The health and wellbeing group proposed a wonderfully vibrant garden space with trees, flowers, foliage and grasses reflecting the colours of the cathedral stained glass. They also envisioned community-designated planting areas, tree-lined seating spaces, and a large canopy for a range of classes and workshops to take place from meditation to yoga.

Many of the young people’s ideas were very close to many of the ideas and conversations the teams at Planit-IE and Buttress have had. A huge thank you to Danny Marsh and Shuwen Peng from Planit and Matthew Burl from Buttress for their support and feedback on the young people’s ideas throughout the session.