Info
About
Rural Office is an award-winning practice with a reputation for delivering considered architecture, strategic thinking and research.
Sometimes we are described as regionalists due to our work in more regional settings and our understanding of context. Often, we explore ideas within rural landscapes, responding to these surroundings by reinterpreting the familiar architectural language of the past. It is from this point that we design, develop and implement innovative thinking to realise the aspirations of the clients and organisations we work for. Our focus principally lies in providing the most appropriate contemporary approach, addressing both the needs of the end user and the context of the site, which are unique in each instance.
Our approach to practice has always been collaborative, working with those who have tacit knowledge of people and place. We regularly collaborate with a wide range of specialists and consultants in order to offer expert design services to a broad range of clients and communities across the UK.
In more recent years, the practice has diversified to deliver strategic projects for national clients and learning institutes, as well as investing in research into the built environment with specific interest in our rural Welsh context.
Contact
Yr Egin
College Rd.
Carmarthen
SA31 3EQ
Press
Rural Office has spent the last decade building a reputation for innovative architecture, design and masterplanning from our base in rural Wales. Clients now include Welsh Government, Amgueddfa Cymru National Museum Wales, Dwr Cymru Welsh Water, S4C, National Trust Wales, the Arts Council of Wales, as well as Aberystwyth, Cardiff, and UWTSD Universities.
The practice has won many awards since being established in 2008, including the RIBA House of the Year 2017 and a RIBA National Award for the groundbreaking carbon neutral estate, Caring Wood, in Kent. Niall was subsequently a 2018 jury member for House of the Year, as featured on Grand Designs.
Recently, we have been listed as one of the 25 UK AJ100 Disruptor practices by the Architects Journal, highlighting smaller offices and networks who challenge the norms of traditional practice in their drive to work in a more sustainable, far-reaching manner.
In 2016 we were selected by the Architecture Foundation as one of the best emerging practices in the UK. During lockdown 2020, as part of the Architecture Foundation’s 100 Day Studio engagement programme, Niall hosted a series of broadcast conversations between fellow practitioners called ‘The Rural Condition’.
We welcome invitations for speaking, interview, and general media enquiries. Our projects are featured in a range of print and online magazines, covering architecture, self-build, construction and lifestyle. Please contact enquiries@rural-office.co.uk for further information.
Recruitment
Project Architect
We are currently recruiting for a talented Project Architect to join our studio-based team in Carmarthen from January 2025. Successful candidates will support a range of new residential and cultural projects across the UK at various technical design stages. This role is best suited to someone with at least three years post qualification experience, who can demonstrate excellent technical abilities and job running capabilities. Applicants should be suitably qualified and passionate about design, with strong written, verbal and visual communication skills. Proficiency working in a Mac-based environment with Vectorworks, SketchUp, Adobe Creative Suite would be desirable. Please send job applications with a Portfolio and CV as PDF attachments (less than 10MB) to enquiries@rural-office.co.uk.
Accreditation
Rural Office is a Royal Institute of British Architects Chartered Practice, trading as Rural Office for Architecture Ltd.
