What we do: We connect people to their environments.

Why we do it: We believe that there is a relationship between how people experience fulfilment and joy in places and their sense of responsibility for a sustainable future for that place and the environment as a whole.

We believe that it is critical that we ask how we create buildings and spaces that are unique, that create a sense of belonging and identity, and because of this are nurtured, outlast us and support environmental, social and economic sustainability.

Our projects balance complex sites, contradictory demands and challenging problems to form apparently effortless spaces that give joy. We create places which are inventive, tactile, spatially layered, functional and materially appropriate and fulfilling to use. Sustainability is at the heart of our practice. We retain a deep responsibility to our environment, and design for longevity, to conserve resources, and to create buildings that are flexible and enable change over time.

We bring the relationship between humans and the natural world to the fore in our work. It is an implicit part of our buildings to enhance a sense of presence, fostering an awareness of nature, place and landscape that unfolds with time and use. We use natural materials in unexpected ways to add texture and depth to our work and to connect our buildings to the external environment.  We regard research as an implicit part of our practice and understand the constraints and opportunities inherent in our often challenging sites. We are able to deliver solutions to problems that seem insurmountable through strategic thinking and thoughtful responses.

Openstudio was founded by Jennifer Beningfield in 2006, and is a RIBA Chartered Architecture practice. Openstudio have won two open RIBA housing competitions: in 2017 the RIBA TW2020 competition to design prototype housing across the UK; and in 2020 the RIBA Home of 2030 housing competition, delivering flexible and sustainable housing suitable for all generations. The practice has exhibited a film installation as part of the 2018 Venice Architecture Biennale, and is featured in Architects’ Houses by Michael Webb, documenting thirty of the best architects’ houses from around the world built in the last ten years.

Openstudio has been short-listed for the NLA New Ideas for Housing competition, the WAN House of the Year award, the RIBA Birmingham Centenary Square competition and the International Brick Award in 2024, the UK Brick Award in 2023 and the NLA Awards for Conservation and Housing, also in 2023. In November 2023 Openstudio won The Plan award for the Westminster Fire Station project.