As an architect with Savills, I spend much of my working day with people who are keen to improve their homes, remodelling or extending them, be they modern, traditional or, as is often the case, listed. I get a huge amount of enjoyment from guiding them through the design process to help them realise their vision and I know that I’m lucky. Lucky because I’m fulfilling a childhood dream; and lucky because it all began with an unexpected stroke of good fortune.

Thirty years ago I entered a 'spot the difference' competition in my local paper. I never expected to win, but to my surprise I scooped top prize – a trip to Legoland in Denmark with my family. The trip helped me discover my creative passion and set the foundations for my career in architecture. I was lucky enough to be given loads more Lego too, which gave me more to learn with.

I’ve always enjoyed Lego; it’s creative, it’s fun and ultimately, it allows you to design in 3D. I spent a lot of my childhood going round to friends’ houses to play with Lego. Different people had different collections which kept it interesting – we’d start with a blank canvas and create buildings and cities together.

My passion for designing was further fuelled by craft, design and technology classes in secondary school, and I remember my teacher, who was impressed with my drawings, encouraging me to pursue it.

At A-level, my final project was to design the new Brighton library, which was an empty city centre plot at the time. Little did I know then, that I would go on to actually work on the project some years later.

I pursued my dream of becoming an architect, qualifying as a Royal Institute of British Architecture (RIBA) chartered architect in 2004, and since then I’ve worked on a wide range of different projects, including major regeneration schemes such as the redevelopment of London Road’s Open Market in my home town of Brighton. It’s a project I’m extremely proud of. It’s great to give something back to the city and one day I’ll be able to tell my grandchildren, ‘I helped design that’.

Further information

Contact Savills Architecture and Building Surveying