Working from studios in London and Wells in Somerset, Prewett Bizley Architects produce inspiring, energy-efficient buildings with a sensitive approach to context. Through a creative dialogue with our clients we seek to create engaging, atmospheric spaces that are a pleasure to use, responsive to needs of their users and that bring lasting improvements to the quality of people’s lives.

We give practical and useful advice that enables our clients to understand the design process and make informed decisions. We are committed to achieving best value for our clients according to their particular needs. We try to observe the nature of places to understand their qualities, patterns and nuances in order to propose interventions that might heal or provide continuity with the existing context.

Having pioneered some of the most extreme low-energy retrofit projects to date in the UK we are passionate about the need to reduce the impact of buildings on the environment. We are part of the 15:40 Collective of architecture practices that share a commitment to radically reducing the energy consumption of buildings through a 'fabric first' approach, with extensive experience in delivering sustainable new-build and retrofit projects using Passivhaus construction methodologies. We offer consultancy services to building owners and other professionals on low-energy construction and Passivhaus design. We have a hands-on approach through which we continuously seek to improve the quality of construction on site.

Our architectural work is rooted in the wider activities of teaching, writing and research which allow us to combine thought and technical innovation with a practical approach to the realities of development and construction. Current research focuses on rural architecture, self-build housing and how the principles of low-energy construction can be applied to retrofit of listed buildings. Please see our Journal for more information.  Our work has been recognised by a number of awards, most recently a Deep Retrofit of a London Mews House which won an RIBA Award and AJ Retrofit Award in 2022, and the 80% House which won an Architecture Today Award in 2023 for Buildings that Stand the Test of Time.. We were winners of the BD Sustainability Architect of the Year Award 2017.

We work closely with Interior Designer Emily Bizley and can offer a fully integrated service incorporating architecture, interior design and energy analysis.  We work throughout the south of England with recent projects in Devon, Somerset, Dorset, Wiltshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Surrey, Sussex, Kent, Cambridge, London and Ireland.

 

How we work 

The posts below from our Journal talk about the way we work and how we think about architecture.

Watch the video below to see a talk given by Graham Bizley in February 2017 at the University of the West of England (UWE) on the work of Prewett Bizley Architects:

 
 

People

 
 

GRAHAM BIZLEY BSC(HONS) BARCH ARB RIBA - DIRECTOR

Graham set up the Somerset office of Prewett Bizley Architects in 2013.  Following his move to Somerset Graham began researching the British landscape. He is particularly interested in what the landscape means to different people and how we can build in the countryside in a way that is sustainable and enhances a sense of place.  He submitted a proposal on rural architecture for the British Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale and was one of 4 shortlisted teams.

Graham has written regularly for various architecture journals and is the author of two books on architectural detailing published by the Architectural Press. He is currently working on a book on Rural Architecture.  Graham lectures widely on the work of the practice at UK universities and is a part-time teaching fellow at the University of Bath.  He is a judge on the RIBA, AJ Sustainability, AJ Retrofit and AJ100 Awards. He sits on the Design West Review Panel, and previously on the Hackney Design Review Panel and on the Islington Conservation and Design Panel.   

Graham studied at Bath University and the ESTAB in Barcelona. Prior to establishing Prewett Bizley Architects he worked for practices in the UK, India and Zimbabwe.

ROBERT PREWETT BSC(HONS) MARCH ARB RIBA - DIRECTOR

Robert heads the London office of Prewett Bizley Architects and has developed considerable expertise in low-carbon construction, particularly in the field of retrofit. He is a certified Passivhaus designer and has presented a number of ground breaking retrofit projects at Passivhaus conferences, RIBA CPD events and the award winning Retrofit Coordinator course.

Robert is a member of the RIBA Sustainable Futures Group which advises the profession and government on the incorporation of sustainability in education, standards and policy. He is a founder member of the Passivhaus Trust and a technical advisor to the STBa (Sustainable Traditional Buildings Alliance). He has previously been a trustee of the charity RESET that aimed to deliver training and knowledge sharing to increase resilience within our built environment, particularly in areas facing severe climate change impacts.

From 2007-11 Robert was Course Coordinator for Construction and ran a Diploma level design studio at the University of Greenwich. He studied at Bath University and the Technische Universiteit in Delft. Before setting up practice with Graham Bizley he worked in the UK, Belgium and the Netherlands.

 

Awards

PREWETT BIZLEY ARCHITECTS

Ashden Awards 2019 - Longlist
BD Sustainability Architect of the Year Award 2017 - Winner
Competition to curate the British Pavilion at the 2014 Venice Biennale - Finalist
BRE Passivhaus Competition 2012 - Runner up
Builder & Engineer Awards 2010, Architectural practice of the year - Winner
Young Architect of the Year (YAYA) 2009 - Finalist

Notting Hill Mews House

RIBA Regional Award 2022 - Winner
AJ Retrofit Awards 2022, Best house >£500k - Winner

malmesbury House

RIBA Regional Award 2021 - Winner
AJ Retrofit Awards 2022, Listed building up to £5M - Shortlisted

BLOOMSBURY TOWN HOUSE

AJ Retrofit Awards 2016, Listed building under £5 Million - Shortlisted

DUNDON PASSIVHAUS

RIBA Stephen Lawrence Prize (for best building under £1M) 2015 - Finalist
RIBA National Award 2015 – Winner
RIBA Regional Award 2015 (Southwest) – Winner
Daily Telegraph Homebuilding & Renovating Awards 2015, Best Eco House – Winner
Wood Awards 2015, Private – Runner up
Passivhaus Awards 2015 - Runner up
Structural Timber Awards 2015, Best private housing project – Highly Commended

Kentish Town House

Don't Move, Improve Exhibition - 2017

EWI-PRO GUTTER

AJ Retrofit Awards 2016, Product Inovation award - Shortlisted

RETROFIT FOR THE FUTURE HOUSE

Retrofit Awards 2012, Housing (small) - Shortlisted (Highly Commended)

80% HOUSE

Architecture Today Awards 2023 for Buildings That Stand the Test of Time - Winner
Retrofit Awards 2010, Domestic building (single house) - Shortlisted
Hackney Design Awards 2010 - Shortlisted
Sustainability Awards 2009, Sustainable project of the year (under £2m) - Shortlisted

REGENTS PARK OPEN AIR THEATRE

Builder & Engineer Awards 2009, Turning to timber award - Winner
Civic Trust Awards 2009 - Shortlisted
Wood Awards 2009, Commercial and public access - Runner-up
Wood Awards 2009, Best use of panel products - Runner-up

Sky Edge housing, Sheffield

Europan 9, 2008 - Winner

NEWINGTON GREEN HOUSE

RIBA Awards 2005 - Shortlisted
Brick Awards 2004, Best single house - Runner-up

 

PRESS

PREWETT BIZLEY ARCHITECTS

AJ Climate Champions Podcast - June 2022
Sky News - 29 June 2020, Build Back Better 
Daily Telegraph - 27 April 2019, How to turn your draughty period property into an eco home 
New Architects 3 - Britain's Best Emerging Architects, The Architecture Foundation & Merrell, 2016
Building Design – 9 October 2009, YAYA 2009 Shortlist Announced
The Independent - 31 December 2005, Jay Merrick, 'The Faces to Watch in 2006'
Blueprint - December 2005, p50-51, Peter Kelly, 'Portfolio' feature

Malmesbury HousE

Wallpaper - 15 September 2020
Architecture Today - June 2020, ‘A New Chapter’

DUNDON PASSIVHAUS

Country Living Modern Rustic - Issue 11 p26-37, 2018, 'Points of View'
Red Magazine - July 2018, p106-111, Ben Kendrick, 'Against the Grain'
The Modern Timber House in the UK - 2017, Wood For Good, Peter Wilson (download via this link)
Evening Standard, Homes & Property, Living the Country Dream - 25 September 2017, Philippa Stockley
House & Garden - September 2017, p74-81, Christopher Stocks, 'Passive Principles in Action'
Somerset Life - April 2017, p49-53, Victoria Jenkins. 'Minimalism at Its Best'
Homebuilding and Renovating - January 2016, p91, Michael Holmes, ‘A Triumph in Timber’=
DETAIL Green - January 2016, p10-11, Feargal Doyle et al., ‘House in Dundon’
Passivhaus+ - Issue 14, 2016, Ben Adam-Smith
Grand Designs - House of the Year, Channel 4, 4 November 2015
The Daily Mail - Kevin McCloud reveals Britain's best new homes, 4 November 2015
The Daily Telegraph - 29th October 2015, Kevin McCloud - Britain's Best Houses of 2015, Harry Wallop
The Daily Telegraph - 5th September 2015, p3, Jason Orme, ‘Award-winning homes that are built by you’
The FT - 23 July 2015, Britain's Best Designed Home?, Paul Miles
The Sunday Times - 21st June 2015, p22, ‘Architecture: Dundon Passivhaus, Somerset, Prewett Bizley Architects‘
RIBA Journal, 1 May 2015
The Architects’ Journal - 24 April 2015, p30-33, ‘Case Study: Dundon Passivhaus‘
Architecture Today, ‘Dundon Passivhaus’, Inhabit - Architecture Today - February 2015, p2-5

Bloomsbury Town HOUSE

Passivhaus+ - Issue 20, 2017, Kate de Selincourt - Historic London House Gets Near Passive Transformation
Evening Standard, Homes & Property - How to Fit a Passivhaus into a Period Home - 7 December 2016
The Architects' Journal - 16 September 2016, Yogini Patel

Kentish town HOUSE

Grand Designs Magazine, November 2018, p129-130, ‘Come in From the Cold’

Holland Park Mews House

Evening Standard, Homes & Property - 21 September 2016, Phillipa Stockley

KYVERDALE HOUSE

The Metro Property, 28 February 2017, p6-7, Jo Knowsley
Grand Designs Magazine, September 2014, p88-94, Sophie Vening

RETROFIT FOR THE FUTURE HOUSE

Residential Retrofit: Twenty Case Studies, RIBA Publishing, 2013, Marion Baeli
Architecture Today – May 2011, EcoTech p16-18, Paul Ruyssevelt – Future Proofing: Upgrading the UK Housing Stock
Building, 4 June 2010, p44-45, Stephen Kennett, ‘Passivhaus Diary’
Building, Robert Prewett, ‘Passivhaus Diary’, 6 August 2010, p42-43, 3 September 2010, p44-45, 8 October 2010, p68-69

80% HOUSE

Renovations: An Inspirational Design Primer, RIBA Publishing, 2016, Richard Wilcox
Residential Retrofit: Twenty Case Studies, RIBA Publishing, 2013, Marion Baeli
Evening Standard, 26 January 2011, Homes & Property p18-19, Barbara Chandler, ‘Our eco Home’
Grand Designs Magazine, October 2010, p76-84, Katy Dunn, ‘Pioneering Spirit’
The Victorian – March 2010, p8-9, ‘89 Culford Road’
Architecture In Detail vol II, Architectural Press, 2010, Graham Bizley
Building – 22 January 2010, p44-48, Thomas Lane, ‘A Haus in Hackney’
Delta T – December 2009, p8-12, James Parker, ‘Just How Low Can We Go?’
Radio 4, 17 December 2009, Simon Schama, You & Yours, 

REGENTS PARK OPEN AIR THEATRE

RIBA Journal – August 2008, p40-42,Naomi Stungo, ‘Bottom, thou art translated’
Architecture In Detail vol II, Architectural Press, 2010, Graham Bizley

BALFOUR HOUSE

Home – Investing In Design by David Littlefield, Wiley, 2008
Homes & Gardens, April 2010, p153, Katarina Burrows, ‘Inside Out’
Evening Standard, Homes & Property - 18 March 2009, p7, Zoë Blackler, ‘Anything Goes’

EUROPAN 9 – SKY EDGE

FX Magazine - June 2008, p30
Building Design - 9 May 2008, p3

NEWINGTON GREEN HOUSE

Evening Standard - 11 September 2013, p36-37, Kieran Long, ‘A Home to DIY For’
The New Modern House: Redefining Functionalism, Lawrence King, 2010, Jonathan Bell and Ellie Stathaki
The Independent – 15 October 2010, Living p52-53, Oliver Bennett, ‘Its Time to Start Thinking Big’
New York Times – 7 October 2010, pD08, Rocky Casale, ‘A Big Idea Fit for a Tiny Lot’
100 Houses:  Modern Designs for Contemporary Living, Merrell, 2009, Cathy Strongman
Basics - Interior Architecture: Drawing Out the Interior, AVA Publishing, 2009, Ro Spankie
Architektur + Wettbewerbe – September 2008 p60-63, Arne Barth, ‘Residential House with Office in London’
Daily Telegraph magazine - 28 July 2007 p64-67, Abigail Edwards, 'All Rooms with a View'
New London Architecture II, Merrell, 2007, Kenneth Powell & Cathy Strongman
Architecture In Detail, Architectural Press, 2007, Graham Bizley
Grand Designs Magazine - October 2006, p139-141, Fiona Sibley, 'Libraries'
Icon - August 2006, p21, Marcus Fairs, 'I Visited This House'
Evening Standard - 19 July 2006, Homes & Property p22, Fay Sweet, 'A Very Clever Plot'
Baumeister (Germany) - B4, April 2006, p54-59, Anne Hultzsch, 'Fenster zur Stadt'
Constuire In Laterizio (Italy) - 110, March/April 2006, p70-73, Andrea Campioli, 'Tutto a vista'
Architectural Review - March 2006, p37, 50-51, Rob Gregory, 'The House: New Paradigms'
Pen Magazine (Japan) - March 2006, Noriko Takiguchi, 'Architects Own Houses'
Grand Designs Magazine - February 2006, p53, 60-68, Cathy Strongman, 'Neighbourhood Watch'
RIBA Journal - January 2006, p48-52, Jan Carlos Kucharek, 'No Place Like Home'