Thoughts | Purcell Architecture

Elizabeth Smith, Chairman

Climate resilience and adaptation

Purcell’s Chairman, Elizabeth Smith, recently addressed an audience of Historic House owners on the topic of protecting historic properties from the threats of climate change, especially the impact of increased rainfall and flooding events.

Written by

Nicholas de Klerk, Head of Hotels

Innovation, Heritage

Heritage and hospitality

Five minutes with our Head of Hotels, Nicholas de Klerk.

Innovation, Heritage

Minley Manor: Designing hospitality within heritage

Minley Manor, a French Gothic-style house in Hampshire, demonstrates how heritage and development can be balanced.

Heritage

Exploring the historic buildings of Yorkshire

To celebrate Yorkshire Day 2025, Purcell’s York studio team revisit some of the remarkable buildings in the historic county of Yorkshire they’ve had the privilege of working on.

Written by

Elizabeth Smith, Chairman

Legacy

Reimagining Purcell

We are excited to share our new website. Our Chairman, Elizabeth Smith, explains how its design and new visual identity is founded on our practice values.

Written by

Tracey Skovronek, Managing Director

Heritage

International perspectives in practice: Heritage beyond borders

As an employee-owned practice, we value the rich knowledge across our practice and diverse projects, clients and communities we work in.

Written by

Tom Brigden, Partner

Heritage, Sustainability

Heritage as opportunity: how to unlock the power of heritage capital for a sustainable future

Tom Brigden, Partner at Purcell, explores how our historic built environment holds untapped potential to deliver economic, social, and environmental value.

Written by

Owen Plummer, Associate

The climate emergency and our industrial heritage: what next?

Several Purcell projects have been directly affected by the climate emergency. As a global team of heritage custodians and conservation experts, we feel the need to respond and take responsibility towards the growing impact that climate change is having on our industrial heritage.

Written by

Elizabeth Smith, Chairman

Culture, Legacy

Insights from the International Museums Construction Congress 2024

This year has seen Purcell’s Cultural Sector team attend the International Museums Construction Congress for the first time. Purcell Chairman and Cultural Sector Lead Liz Smith, and Edinburgh Studio Lead Lorna Crane attended the congress, held in venues across the beautiful World Heritage Site of Edinburgh.

Written by

Elizabeth Smith, Chairman

Legacy

Reflections: Purcell’s place in architecture

Purcell’s Chairman and Regional Partner, Liz Smith, reflects on Purcell's place in architecture following our shortlisting in the 2024 RIBA Stirling Prize.

Written by

Kit Stiby Harris, Senior Architect

People, Culture

Purcell Design Programme 2024: Timber at Hooke Park

Purcell's 2024 Design Programme focussed on timber, from its cultivation as a material to methods of joinery. In the first such collaboration, the school was hosted this year at Hooke Park, the Dorset woodland campus of the Architectural Association.

Written by

Brittany Elliott, Graduate

Conservation, People

The Longford Academy: Conservation Course

Brittany Elliott, our Sydney studio architectural graduate, shares her experiences at The Longford Academy; a seven-day, hands-on building conservation course.

Written by

Lucy Burke-Smith, Partner

Conservation, Culture

An in depth look at the conservation of historic concrete with West Dean College

Asia Pacific Associate Partner and Trustee Director Lucy Burke-Smith reflects on a day of concrete conservation with international colleagues at West Dean College.

Conservation

Purcell to launch Guidance to RAAC in Listed Buildings at Parliament

Purcell will formally launch their publication, which sets out guidance specifically focusing on RAAC (Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete) in Listed Buildings at an event at the Houses of Parliament next week.

Written by

Elizabeth Smith, Chairman

Heritage

Why is our heritage on fire… again?

The fire at Copenhagen’s historic stock exchange is a reminder that we need to value traditional building skills as much as the buildings themselves, writes Liz Smith for Building Design magazine.

Written by

Jonathan Deeming, Regional Partner

Jo Deeming’s Canterbury Tales of the Unexpected – Turning site safety into a public experience

Purcell Partner, Jo Deeming, explores how to turn a restoration challenge into funding opportunities that can enhance, rather than diminish the public experience.