About Us

Project Compass CIC has been developed and funded by a dedicated group of architects and formed as a CIC (Community Interest Company), with the aim of opening, promoting and making access to a high quality built environment easier, simpler, more economical, professional and more importantly transparent.

Whilst developed by architects the Project Compass CIC service has a wider aim of promoting higher standards and qualities across all sectors of the built environment, whether for engineers, landscape, surveyors, managers or clients. As a procurement intelligence service Project Compass CIC provides an open access research facility and clear-cut best practice guidance directly, through its publications and via the linked services.

We continue to develop and expand our easy access e-procurement services, providing free access to current architectural Tender Notices within the UK.  Project Compass CIC provides a trackable and interrogable database of all past OJEU notices, ranking projects by date, location, client, size, brief, requirements, etc. Project Compass CIC has been assembling a database comprising over 15,000 UK architectural commissions since 2009, which informs and evidences our guidance and reporting.

Get in Touch

You can contact Project Compass on ProjectCompassCIC@gmail.com

The Directors

Walter Menteth

BA(Arch), Dip Arch (PSB), RIBA, FRIAS.

Walter is an architect, planner, writer and educator, director of Walter Menteth Architects, Trustee of the North Southwark Environment Trust,  the Sustainable Conservation Trust, and Regeneration partnership manager at the London Borough of Enfield.

His practice has won a number of architectural awards and been nominated for the EU Mies van de Rohe award. He studied architecture at Nottingham, Southbank, and Louvain la Neuve.

He has been a visiting critic, external examiner and lecturer at various UK architecture schools, and a senior lecturer for ten years at the Portsmouth School of Architecture. He was Chair of the RIBA Procurement Reform Group 2011-2013, a member of the Cabinet Office SME Panel 2011-2015 and RIBA National Councillor 2011-17.

He holds the inaugural 2015 RIBA President’s Medal for Research and an RIBA President’s Award for Practice-located Research for his work on procurement reform. Walter has won and judged architectural competitions, and contributes research in climate change, on flooding and rising sea level resilience planning and design. His lectures and writing have been published extensively.

Owen O’Carroll

Dip Arch. B.Sc. MA. RIBA, Director of Urban X Architects. RIBA London Councillor, Part-time critic Southbank University.

Owen shares a strong interest in the design and procurement of the public and urban environment having worked within it for the thirty years in the UK, Europe and the Middle East. He has sat on the Board of RIBA (2011-13) and is a current term Council Member (2014-17). Owen has a strong connection with India, having spent time visiting over 37 cities on the sub-continent. In lecture series in universities in Chandigarh and Lucknow, he has participated in discussing the future of India’s urban centres. He has provided strategic urban design advice to Mumbai First and more lately advised on Mumbai’s emerging 2034 Development Plan.

He is a natural and skilled urban sketcher, which has provided him with insights and access with cities from China to Los Angeles. Owen has published a range of papers on urban design, the most recent being ‘City of Shallow Hollows’ as part of the China Papers published March 2015 by RIBAJ. He was one of the founding members of a large central London Practice (70 strong) before leaving in 2013 to set up urbanX Architecture and Urban Design. Owen holds Master and Bachelors degrees from Trinity College Dublin and a Masters in Urban Design from London Southbank University, where he acts as visiting critic.

Russell Curtis

BA (Hon), BArch(Hon), RIBA, Founding director of RCKa Architects, member of RIBA Construction Leadership Group and former chair of RIBA Procurement Reform Group, RIBA Council member for London Region 2012-2017.

Russell is a graduate of the Universities of Portsmouth and Newcastle, and founded RCKa Architects with Tim Riley and Dieter Kleiner in 2008. The practice has since won a number of international design competitions, including Europan 9 for it’s scheme in Stoke-on-Trent, and has twice been a finalist for Young Architect of the Year. In 2014 RCKa was awarded RIBA London’s Emerging Practice of the Year, later going on to win an RIBA National Award for its TNG Youth Centre in south-east London.

Russell is a Trustee of the Architecture Foundation and a member of the Mayor of London’s Design Advocate panel.

Bridget Sawyers

BA (Arch), Dip Arch, MA Urb Des, ARB, RSA.

Bridget is a director of Project Compass CIC and Bridget Sawyers Ltd. She was previously Chief Executive of the Architecture Centre Network, Head of Regions at CABE, Senior Architecture Officer at Arts Council England and a Capital Assessor for Arts Councils England and Wales and Creative Scotland – all with a focus on improving design quality.

She has sat on a number of local and regional design review panels, the National Panel of the Civic Trust Awards, and been involved in appointing design teams and artists for numerous projects.

Since 2001 Bridget has run a cultural and public art consultancy supporting design excellence through integration of art, public realm, and architecture. Current projects include the delivery of Tideway’s public art programme in London and public art strategy development for Brighton and Hove Council and public art delivery for Translink in Belfast.

Patrons

Ian Ritchie

CBE RA, Director Ian Ritchie Architects

Founded in 1981, it is one of the world’s leading practices, with a longstanding and consistent reputation for delivering innovative, environmentally ethical designs using cutting edge materials and techniques. The practice has won over 100 national and international awards. In 1981 he also co-founded the design engineering firm Rice Francis Ritchie (RFR) in Paris.

Ian is a Royal Academician and elected member of Berlin’s Akademie der Künste. He is Honorary Visiting Professor of Architecture Liverpool University; Fellow of the Society of Façade Engineering; and Emeritus Commissioner CABE. He advises the Backstage Trust. Recently He has been advisor to The Ove Arup Foundation, the Director of the Centre for Urban Science and Progress NYU, and to the President of Columbia University on the Manhattanville masterplan. He was made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in July 2018.

From 1997 to 2003, Ian Ritchie was president of Europan UK (a pan European urban and social housing biennial design competition for young architects). Working as Architectural Advisor to the Lord Chancellor (1999-2004), Ian Ritchie had a central role in helping to formulate procurement and design quality policy within the Lord Chancellor’s Department for all new court buildings. Supported by the Lord Chancellor, the policy aim was to establish the Lord Chancellor’s Department as an exemplar of design standards that other Ministries would recognise and emulate.

Personal awards include: CBE (2000); French Académie d’Architecture Silver Medal for Innovation; Honorary Doctor of Letters, University of Westminster (2000). In 2010 Ritchie was awarded Honorary Fellowship of the American Institute of Architects; Honorary Fellowship of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland.

He has chaired many international juries including RIBA Stirling Prize, the RIAS Doolan Award, Berlin Art Prize, Czech Architecture Grand Prix Jury and the French government’s ‘Nouveaux Jeunes Albums’. He continues to lecture globally, has written several books, including poetry, and Ian’s art is held in several international galleries and museums.

Angela Brady

Director Brady Mallalieu Architects, Past President of Royal Institute of British Architects (2011-2013)

Angela Brady is past president of RIBA (2011-2013) and Director of Brady Mallalieu Architects set up with Robin Mallalieu, who celebrate over 25 years in London, as an award winning RIBA Chartered practice, specialising in quality contemporary sustainable design. Current projects include high-end office fit outs, quality mixed tenure social & private housing projects in London and master planning projects.

Angela is also a professional TV broadcaster working on a new TV series “Designing Ireland” – a critical review of Architecture, Place and Craft, has made many videos including “The role of the architect” and completed “Designing for Champions” about the London 2012 designers of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (on RIBA website).

As chairperson of Women In Architecture (WIA – 2000-2005) she curated the successful DiverseCity exhibition which travelled to 34 cities worldwide promoting diversity of people in architecture. Angela is an avid campaigner for sustainable design and for saving historic buildings such as Ancoats and Preston Bus station, and Equality and Ethics in architecture.

Angela gives talks worldwide on sustainable city making and integrated design. She is an Ambassador for British Council to Vietnam and led many UKTI business missions overseas. Her latest book is a collection of UK expertise called “The British Papers” which will be launched at EcoBuild London in March 2015.

Angela was born and educated in Dublin Ireland and graduated from DIT Dublin School of architecture. Personal awards include: the Irish Post/AIB Bank Award for personal achievement in architecture; The Lifetime Achievement for ‘Women In Construction’ 2012; and the ‘WISE women of outstanding achievement’ for leadership and inspiration 2013. As a STEMnet ambassador she promotes architecture as a career in schools.