Architect to Developer: Regenerative Design and Real Impact

In this Architecture Social CPD, Russ Edwards, Project Director at Latimer (the development arm of Clarion Housing Group), joins Stephen Drew to discuss his move from architecture into large-scale housing development. Recorded for the Architecture Social podcast, the conversation runs for around 38 minutes.

Who this is for

Architects, Part 2 architectural assistants and design professionals curious about client-side and development roles, plus anyone interested in regenerative design, garden communities and how developers select and work with design teams.

Learning outcomes

1. You will be able to describe how an architect's skill set maps onto development and project director roles.
2. You will be able to explain the day-to-day differences between architectural practice and a client-side development role.
3. You will be able to identify what developers value in competition submissions and design team behaviour.
4. You will be able to define regenerative design and distinguish it from conventional sustainability.
5. You will be able to weigh the trade-offs of moving from practice into development.
6. You will be able to recognise where emerging technologies such as AI are starting to influence development and planning.

From architecture into development

Russ trained as an architect and spent around a decade in practice, much of it at dRMM, where he led residential projects. Exposure to strong and weak clients opened his mind to the influence available on the client side, and a growing focus on the housing crisis drew him towards development rather than away from design.

The shape of a project director's week

His current role is strategic rather than hands-on. Solely dedicated to the Tendring Colchester Borders Garden Community, he spends much of his time on stakeholder management with councils and local communities, internal governance, business planning and policy work, with design team meetings making up a smaller share than in practice.

Competing for work: what developers notice

Russ shares practical advice for teams pitching for projects: read the brief and submission requirements carefully, tailor language and graphics to the actual audience (often non-architects), and land a clear, bold message early. In an open competition with 30 submissions and a jury working through them in a single day, clarity and understanding the process matter as much as the design.

Working with the design team

From the client side, he values designers who bring a recommendation and show their working, rather than pinning up ten options to choose from or presenting a single solution as settled. He also highlights the value of plain English over architectural jargon.

Sustainability and regenerative design

Russ describes a shift from sustainability as "doing less bad" towards regenerative design, aiming for a net positive impact on the environment. With a competition-winning team that includes Haworth Tompkins, Arup and Exploration Architecture, the project sets long-term ambitions across a 25-year horizon, a theme that has also reshaped how he thinks about his own family and responsibilities.

Advice before making the move

He treats a move into development as a significant, often one-way step that should be made for the right reasons rather than to escape a bad week or chase work-life balance. Trusted relationships and mentors built during his time in practice were central to his own transition.

Emerging technology and the outlook

The team is already using AI tools for meeting actions and to test and critique emerging masterplans, and is exploring parametric and generative design. Russ is cautiously optimistic about the industry's direction and about growing youth engagement in shaping new places.

Key terms

• Regenerative design: a design approach aiming for a net positive impact on the environment, going beyond reducing harm.
• Garden community: a planned new settlement combining homes, green space and infrastructure, brought forward with local authority partners.
• Client side: working for the organisation that commissions and delivers projects, rather than the consultant design team.
• Project Director: a strategic role leading a development end to end, from policy and stakeholders to design direction and governance.

Reflective prompts for your CPD record

1. Where could a client-side or development perspective change how you approach your current projects?
2. How would you adapt a competition submission for a predominantly non-architect audience?
3. What would "net positive" rather than "less bad" mean for a project you are working on now?

About the guest

Russ Edwards is Project Director at Latimer, the development arm of Clarion Housing Group. He trained as an architect, holds a BA in Architecture from the University of Portsmouth, and worked in practice for around a decade, including at Stirling Prize-winning dRMM, before moving into development roles at Pocket Living, Lendlease and Latimer.