My Workplace

Environmental Statement

I am committed to providing a quality service in a manner which ensures a safe and healthy workplace for myself and visitors and which minimises our potential impact on the environment. I operate in compliance with all relevant environmental legislation and strive to prevent pollution and use environmental best practice in all that I do.

Having recently completed my own self-build house, a major design decision was to integrate an architect's office and meeting space. Some of the positive benefits of this decision are :-

  • The house / office is designed to Passivhaus standards, so there are virtually no heating costs.

  • My electricity provider generates from 100% renewable sources.

  • Solar PV generation provides free electricity to power the office for most of the year.

  • Lighting is 100% LED to reduce energy usage and environmental impact.

  • Vehicular travel to and from work is eliminated.

  • The location on the edge of Penzance town ensures that I can walk to many locations.

  • This decision also has a cost benefit and my office overheads are reduced to a minimum, which can be reflected in my fees.

All communication and design work is carried out electronically where practical to reduce the need for paper and storage. All information is securely backed up in accordance with my GDPR policy on a remote server.

Where paper copies are needed, I seek to use recycled paper and to recycle any paper waste I produce.

When purchasing new equipment, products or materials I seek to source environmentally responsible and energy efficient products from local suppliers where possible.

I will strive to continually improve my environmental performance and minimise the social impact and damage of my activities by periodically reviewing my environmental policy in the light of my current and planned future activities.

My Designs

I recognise that the projects I design will have far more environmental impact than my own workplace. Therefore, I am further committed to exercising my professional skill to minimise environmental impact in so far as it is practical within the instructions received from my clients.

I will raise awareness to clients of opportunities to incorporate ideas and products into designs which will enhance the sustainability and environmental protection of their project.

I will asses a site or existing building in light of its ecological value and micro-climate to ensure that any design makes the best use of the natural features of the site including sun, natural light, passive heat gain and shading, wind and landscaping protection.

My approach to environmental design is generally ‘fabric first’, in other words the basic construction of the building is key. I will therefore suggest that where practical building regulations requirements for the thermal performance of a building are exceeded rather than designing to minimum standards. In this way small extra build costs can give cost benefits throughout the life of the building.

I will advise on the potential for local power generation from renewable energy sources and work with the client and specialists to incorporate these features into the designs if appropriate, seeking to balance capital investment with reasonable pay back times.

I will seek to specify materials and products which provide a balance between environmental impact, cost and performance in use.

I will seek to ensure in conjunction with other consultants that building services are inherently efficient and controllable, and that metering encourages monitoring and management of resource use.

This policy will be reviewed from time to time as necessary at a maximum of three year intervals.

This policy will be reviewed from time to time as necessary at a maximum of three year intervals.