Postgraduate architecture students at the University of the West of England (UWE) have been given the opportunity to work on a live housing development project with social housing provider Stonewater.
Four students from UWE’s architecture programme are working on the early master planning stages of a new housing site alongside Stonewater and development partner BoonBrown.
The initiative follows previous collaborations between Stonewater and undergraduate students focused on designing homes for Bristol’s diverse communities, particularly underrepresented groups.
This year, changes to the university curriculum allowed postgraduate students to take part in the live project work.
Matthew Crucefix, director of development operations at Stonewater, said: “When you talk to people who have built careers in housing, it is all too common to hear that they ended up in the sector by chance.
“We’re keen to change that by investing in the next generation and giving them a taste of what it’s like to work in housing. Inviting students to be involved in the tangible development of our new site allows them to work on real-world deliverables and gives them invaluable experience working with clients.”
Crucefix said many people entering housing-related professions begin their careers without prior client experience.
He added: “Many people entering architecture, development or other housing careers often don’t have experience working with clients when they start out, so projects like this are really useful in developing learning opportunities for career-ready graduates.”
BoonBrown worked with Stonewater to support students throughout the project, helping them develop master planning documents that could potentially inform the final scheme.
Sydney Winter, architectural apprentice at BoonBrown, said: “Not only is this project a great opportunity for the students taking part, but it’s also a brilliant chance for us to get fresh eyes and new ideas.
“Stonewater and BoonBrown have worked together for a long time and we have built reliable patterns for building high-standard homes and communities.
“The students’ final presentation was a great opportunity to learn how they would shape this development and see what we can take into development.”
Winter added: “As someone who has recently completed postgraduate studies, I can’t express enough how important projects like this are to help people enter the field with real-world experience.”
Ann de Graft-Johnson, senior lecturer in architecture and the environment at UWE, said the programme was designed to give students experience of professional responsibilities.
She added: “The students working with Stonewater had not experienced creating housing for rural communities before, so it was invaluable for them.
“Creating something of value to a unique rural community was a new challenge and it’s provided valuable lessons to take into the future.”
She said: “It’s clear that Stonewater is dedicated to creating communities, not just building houses. The team is always interested in enabling conversations and they are always open to taking on new ideas. It’s been great for students to learn from a provider who operates at this level.”
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