Richard McDowell

Architect director Sheffield

T: +44 [0]114 273 1641
E: richard.mcdowell@bdp.com

Richard is the Education Sector Lead of the Sheffield Studio with an impressive portfolio of projects across a wide range of building types.

He has an outstanding track record of generating concept designs and leading design teams in developing these into successfully completed buildings. He has worked on many large complex projects with multiple stakeholders. These have involved him in extensive dialogue with users to develop briefs and formulate design strategies.

Throughout his career Richard has focused primarily on Higher Education Projects. He was Project Director for the University of York’s, award winning, major campus expansion, leading a large team in developing the brief and designing and delivering four highly complex academic buildings. These buildings include innovative learning and research spaces featured in current research into new types of learning environments. He is also experienced in adapting existing buildings. Given Richard’s experience of auditoria design he has also led a number of cultural projects including Millenium Place in Durham and the Sabah Al Ahmad Cultural Centre in Kuwait.

He currently leads the design team on the Hull Health Hub medical school.

Richard sits on BDP’s Education Caucus Group, which shares best practice and innovation from across the practice and is also BDP’s Framework Lead for Sheffield Hallam University.

What will be the key characteristics of your profession in 2050?

Adaptive reuse of exiting building and, where new build is unavoidable, the use of locally sourced material.
Hopefully a more diverse workforce once barrier to the profession are broken down and alternative routes to qualification adopted.

Projects

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Goodricke College, University of York

Simply yet considerately designed college houses are skilfully manipulated in scale and massing to give the scheme its distinctive flowing/undulating roofscape; creating sunny courtyard spaces.

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Cultural Centre, Sabah Al Ahmad

Creating such a large scale project while maintaing a humanistic approach is a complex challenge culturally, architecturally and environmentally, and we intend to set a new international standard for such facilities.

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Ron Cooke Hub, University of York

The Hub is the public face of the new campus at Heslington East masterplanned by BDP. It is the gateway through which visitors will enter the campus, and as such is the most significant building on the site.

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Computer Science Building, University of York

BDP was selected by the University of York to masterplan, and design the individual buildings, for the first phase of its campus expansion at Heslington East.

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Allam Medical Building, University of Hull

A new ‘health hub’ houses the Hull York Medical School, Faculty of Health and Social Care and the Applied Health Research Institute and provides a much needed social heart to establish and grow research in applied health within a state of the art clinical skills facility.

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The Catalyst, University of York

One of four new academic buildings forming part of the University of York’s Heslington east campus designed to support the growth of start-ups in creative, IT, digital and media sectors.

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Department of Theatre, Film and Television, University of York

A new academic building at the Heslington East Campus offering a full range of up-to-date technical facilities for the department of theatre, film and television.

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Sheffield Hallam University Masterplan

Sheffield Hallam University campus masterplan is placed at the heart of the city and is a single, sustainable and flexible campus.

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Schools of Law and Management, University of York

The Schools of Law and Management are in one of four academic buildings forming part of the Heslington East campus at the University of York.

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Allam Medical Building, University of Hull

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Manchester Engineering Campus Development

Construction of the largest home for engineering in any UK university. Manchester Engineering Campus Development (MECD) provides world-class sustainable research facilities, alongside flexible and innovative teaching and learning spaces for 8,000 students, staff and academics.

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News

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Next stage in Sheffield Hallam campus plan revealed

19/05/2021

Sheffield Hallam has released new images which show the latest plans to develop its city campus at a key gateway to Sheffield city centre.

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