Hello! My name is Amber Luscombe, a qualified Architect and a WELL Building Accredited Professional (WELL AP). Welcome to my blog, i’m really excited to have you here.
I’m going to take a guess that if you’re here, you’re either an architect yourself, a professional within the built environment or you have some interest in wellbeing in architecture, so this blog is for you as much as it is for me. This blog aims to be a discussion forum and a way for me to impart my knowledge on architecture and wellbeing, as well as a journey of discovery on this ever evolving topic, and I would love for you to join me on my journey, exploring the past, present and future of wellbeing in architecture.
Arguably wellbeing has been embedded within architecture since humans made the first shelter. The shelter provided protection from the wind, rain, harsh sun and cold nights as well as providing comfort, a sense of belonging and as we became less nomadic, groups of these shelters started to form communities and groups. A future blog post will delve more into the history of wellbeing in architecture, but for now let’s just use this as an example to say that architecture has always been about wellbeing in some form.
So why is wellbeing in architecture more important, more recognised and more needed now than ever before? The built environment is complex, a multitude of factors are weaved into every single structure that we inhabit, walk through or see and whilst wellbeing has some part to play, it’s not always at the forefront of the design when cost, time and quality are all under pressure. Pre Covid-19 wellbeing has steadily been moving up the agenda, with standards such as WELL and Fitwel becoming part of the norm in construction, however the impact of Covid-19 has certainly had a part to play in looking at how we design spaces which make the most of people’s health and wellbeing. All of these points are complex and multi faceted studies in themselves, however it’s certain that in 2021 Wellbeing is the highest on the agenda that it’s ever been, highlighted by 2021’s Pritzker prize winners , and there are no signs that it’s leaving anytime soon.
So as a qualified architect working in London and with specialism in the Business Space sector, I have years of experience in designing places for people to work and always with an emphasis on wellbeing, contributing to some of the best designed office space in the city. Prior to that I worked in Cardiff in the public education sector, providing safe and high quality learning spaces for students. Furthermore, I qualified almost a year ago as a WELL Building Accredited Professional, a qualification which is backed by over 6 years of scientific research, and a certification which ‘denotes expertise in the WELL Building Standard (WELL) and a commitment to advancing human health and wellness in building and communities around the world’. https://www.wellcertified.com/well-ap And whilst I am proud to be a WELL AP and the expertise I can bring because of it, I appreciate and know that WELL isn’t right for every project, and wellbeing is far more complex than one certificate alone.
Therefore, this blog aims to look at and dive into the past, present and future of wellbeing in architecture, exploring and uncovering different pieces of research, the latest thinking and useful tips and tricks to improving wellbeing both in your work and in your own life. I hope to use this space to document my own knowledge, learn new things and improve my practice and I hope that by doing so, others might also benefit.
I’d love for this to become an open discussion and forum for all things architecture and wellbeing, so please drop a comment below or get in touch via email, and let me know your thoughts, or just to say hi!
Project Wellbeing 