Working People’s Club by James Paul proposes a skills centre in 1980s Birmingham, on a site adjacent to the former modernist Bull Ring Centre.
The project challenges the insular nature of traditional working mens clubs and reframes that social history into a more inclusive civic learning space.
A civic skills centre
The project takes the idea of a club and opens it up. Instead of a closed social group, it imagines a place for skill development, workshops and wider community activity.
- The project is set in 1980s Birmingham.
- The site sits near the former modernist Bull Ring Centre.
- The brief responds to exclusion in traditional club culture.
- James brings a structural engineering and architecture background to the design.
Why the structural background helps
The structural engineering background is relevant because the project needs technical clarity as well as social purpose. The most convincing portfolio pages show how structure, programme and civic use reinforce each other.
Portfolio lesson
For Part II candidates, do not bury the project under a generic employability profile. Lead with the work, then explain the technical and professional background that helps the reader understand it.
Show civic projects through use and structure
Civic projects need more than a good intention. They need a clear programme, clear users and enough technical evidence to show how the building works.
- Explain the social condition the project responds to.
- Show the structure and section where they support the idea.
- Keep the city and historical context visible.
- Use the candidate background only where it strengthens the project reading.
Next step
Submit your civic, community or thesis project to Architecture Social Showcase if it has a clear architectural argument and useful visual material.
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