Architecture for Everyone was a three year, nationwide campaign, founded on the belief that built environment professionals who reflect the diversity of the society they serve have a better chance of creating a built environment that meets the needs of society.  The campaign therefore aimed to identify and support new and emerging architectural talent from amongst social groups that have been traditionally excluded from entering and sustaining a career in the profession.

The campaign was nationally led by Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust and international architects RMJM, with Places Matter! leading in the Northwest.

Architecture for Everyone 2010

In this, the campaign's third year, 15-19 year olds from Merseyside and Greater Manchester were invited to participate in a series of workshops taking place from October to December 2010. The project particularly targets young people from black and minority ethnic (B&ME) groups, those from underprivileged backgrounds and young women.

The workshops saw young people learning about the city in which they live and working to develop proposals that would improve it in the future. They  undertook a wide range of activities, from city tours to working with Urban free runners Parkour to see the city in a new light; interviewing designers and residents to taking part in hands-on design workshops led by architects.

The workshops concluded with a presentation evening in December in Liverpool. The Northwest programme seeks to give participants the opportunity to:

• Work on a design project that will see the development of a wide range of skills and knowledge that will help them with their chosen career;
• Meet successful design professionals from the region, helping to breakdown preconceptions about who can succeed in the sector;
• Use the built environment as a means of supporting key curriculum aims, including geography, art, design technology and maths.

This initiative was co funded by the Department for Communities and Local Government.