Part 4 in Architecture: Rethinking CPD with Neal Shasore

In this Architecture Social CPD (around 42 minutes), Stephen Drew is joined by Neal Shasore of the London School of Architecture (LSA) to unpack "Part 4": a set of modular, design-led short courses built for professionals who have already qualified. It is a practical look at how continuing professional development in architecture could be more useful, more active and more honest than the usual lunchtime session.

Who this is for

Part 2 and Part 3 students, newly qualified architects, and built environment professionals deciding where to spend their CPD time. It is especially useful for owners of small and emerging practices weighing how to diversify their work, and for anyone interested in architectural education, retrofit, heritage and fire safety competence.

Learning outcomes

By the end of this session you will be able to:

1. Explain what "Part 4" means at the LSA and how it differs from conventional commercial CPD.
2. Describe how the Building Safety Act and the legacy of Grenfell are reshaping competence and statutorily defined roles such as Principal Designer.
3. Identify how adaptive reuse and a holistic view of heritage can open up new project types for small and emerging practices.
4. Compare passive CPD with active, design-led learning, and recognise the formats that help knowledge stick.
5. Make the commercial case for investing in your own and your team's development as competency frameworks change.
6. Discuss how evolving roles in a greener construction industry might change routes into and across the profession.

The LSA: a deliberate disruptor

The London School of Architecture was established in 2013 and took its first Part 2 students in 2015. It was set up to make architecture education more affordable, and thereby more accessible and more diverse, at a time when established institutions had held the field for decades. Neal describes the school as built "by, with and for practice", supported by a network of more than 200 architectural practices ranging from large international studios to one-person bands. The school has since moved into a former parish hall in Dalston, East London.

What "Part 4" actually is

Part 4 is the LSA's name for modular learning experiences aimed at people already in professional practice, with the ambition to reach across the whole span of the built environment rather than architecture alone. It sits alongside a wider shift towards lifelong learning, including the UK's lifelong loan entitlement, and is an attempt to rethink both the financial and the learning models that sit behind professional education.

Why it exists: competence after Grenfell

The idea grew from a sense that conventional CPD was too often passive and commercially driven, and that architectural education had not fully absorbed the lessons of Grenfell. With the Building Safety Act, the Hackitt Review, and new powers for the ARB and the HSE, statutorily defined roles such as Principal Designer and Principal Contractor are now central. The LSA's first programme, Design for Life, started by taking fire, health and life safety seriously.

Design for Life: fire safety and property resilience

Design for Life: Fire Safety and Property Resilience was the first Part 4 programme, convened from a roundtable in early 2022. Led by Liam Ross, it uses a series of case studies based on the seven purpose groups set out in Approved Document B, translating regulation and guidance into design thinking rather than slides.

Working with Heritage: adaptive reuse

Working with Heritage approaches conservation holistically, covering built, social and intangible heritage rather than only old buildings. Developed with Alan Chandler and Esther Robinson Wild, it makes the climate case for working with what we already have instead of reaching for demolition. For small and emerging practices it is also framed as a route into more interesting clients, cultural projects and public procurement frameworks, helping them build experience in building types they might otherwise be locked out of.

Active learning, not passive

Each programme flips the classroom, replacing lectures with workshops, roundtables and live assessment. Between sessions, learners work through a workbook of design and strategic exercises, a reader of media resources, and a toolbox of resources to apply back in practice. The heritage course tests a shared wiki that participants build together, so the course leaves behind a lasting, shareable artefact rather than a folder of notes.

The case for investing in yourself

Neal makes the argument that, as new competency frameworks arrive and the industry changes quickly, skilling up is both a professional and a commercial imperative. The programmes are designed to be intellectually ambitious while still delivering tangible benefits to a practice, and are positioned as affordable and modular rather than a hard sell. As he puts it, if you are not prepared to invest in yourself, it is hard to expect others to.

Where the profession is heading

Looking ahead, Neal argues for a just transition to a greener construction and built environment sector, which is likely to mean an evolution of roles, responsibilities and divisions of labour. He notes that there is no national shortage of architects, yet a real shortage of competent retrofitters across assessor, coordinator and designer roles, and suggests modular learning can help build that workforce while widening access to the profession. The school's access and outreach work continues under what it calls Part Zero, including an Extended Project Qualification for A-level students and a National Saturday Club.

Key terms

• Part 4: the LSA's name for modular, post-qualification learning aimed at practising professionals.
• CPD: continuing professional development, the ongoing learning architects undertake after qualifying.
• Building Safety Act: UK legislation introduced after the Grenfell Tower fire that strengthens duties and competence across construction.
• Principal Designer: a statutorily defined role carrying specific duties for design and safety.
• Adaptive reuse: adapting existing buildings for new uses rather than demolishing and rebuilding.
• Retrofit: upgrading existing buildings, often to improve energy performance.
• Approved Document B: the part of the Building Regulations dealing with fire safety, which groups buildings into purpose groups.
• Lifelong loan entitlement: a UK funding mechanism intended to support flexible, modular learning across a career.

Reflective prompts for your CPD record

1. Which competencies will the changing regulatory landscape most affect in your role, and which gap would you prioritise closing first?
2. Where could retrofit or adaptive reuse experience diversify your practice's pipeline, and what first project type would build that track record?
3. How does your current CPD compare with active, design-led learning, and what single change would make it more useful to your day-to-day work?

About the guest

Neal Shasore is an architectural historian. He led the London School of Architecture as Head of School and Chief Executive from 2021 until he stepped down in early 2025. He previously worked in the practice department of the RIBA, across its professional programmes and research teams, and is a trustee of the Twentieth Century Society and the Architectural Heritage Fund.