BD Architect of the Year Awards Finalists!
We’re extremely proud to announce that we’re shortlisted in the Building Design (BD) Architect of the Awards as Employer of the Year.
Held annually to recognise the incredible work by practices over the past year, the Architect of the Year Awards honour achievement within a particular sector, as well as rewarding stand out individuals and practices. Organisers BD advised that the volume of entries this year was incredible, meaning reaching the shortlist is a true testament to the work of the practice.
Ackroyd Lowrie is one of eight finalists for Architect Employer of the Year, a category which highlights those who excel in providing a high-quality work environment, training and wellbeing initiatives, positive work/life balance, and promote equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI).
Our director, Oli Lowrie comments: “When we set up Ackroyd Lowrie, our intention was always to do things differently. We wanted to build a company that designs the cities of the future and knew that to achieve this, we had to focus on people and creating a workforce with a diverse background. People who actually grew up in cities.
“We’ve worked tirelessly to break down barriers and bring people into architecture whose views are essential to the future of cities but are not typically encouraged to express them. This culminated in the launch of the AL Academy, which not only provides a resource to support and upskill staff, but also aims to bring in young talent and advocate architecture as a viable career by working with schools and offering placements in our studio.
Jon Ackroyd, our director, continues: “The AL Academy has been one of our biggest successes, and places are now fully booked until the end of the year. But this is just one initiative we launched to support staff and future generations. Post-Covid, we made significant investments to ensure our studio remains an attractive place to work, including introducing or upgrading policies surrounding flexible working, childcare, paid overtime, and equal pay.
“We take our responsibility as employers extremely seriously, and by engaging with staff at regular inset, vision and study days throughout the year, we’re able to refine and improve procedures to suit the changing demands of the workplace. Our last staff survey revealed that 95% of employees would recommend Ackroyd Lowrie as a place of work, which is an amazing result. To have this echoed by the BD Awards judging panel and be recognised as a finalist is a very proud moment for our team.”
The BD Awards will be presented at a ceremony at The Brewery, London on 17 October. View the shortlist here.