"Our architecture is a direct response to the aims and ambitions of our clients and users”
Mission Statement or My Vision ?
I have been in architecture for over thirty years, having worked for large international architectural practices in London and East Anglia, who’s aims were often to be painfully efficient in creating boring boxes, predictable corporate consultants, who viewed creativity as a form of Witchcraft! However as a graduate of the Architectural Association, world renowned for producing Starchitect’s of the avant-garde and their often wild narcissistic ideas. I am skilled and experienced in efficiency and creativity and don’t see them as mutually exclusive, so I set up the practice in 2006 that became Affect Community in 2020 to operate in the fertile overlap between two opposites.
Rather than choosing one or the other, we choose a third way, a pragmatic utopian architecture that takes on creation of socially, economically and environmentally conscious places “cognitive spaces” as a practical objective. If we are not copying historical models or edicts, copying the poorly designed neighbouring buildings or creating narcissistic temple to our creative genius, as great almighty architects, grand geometricians, what influences our design?
Our unique pragmatic utopianism, is designed and created by listening to and collaborating with our clients and their building users. We place the emphasis on the development of close working relationships between clients, designers, consultants and contractors, to achieve the highest levels of functionality. We take a proactive role in leading the design team engaging the community in the design process of the building, whilst utilizing the latest modern methods of construction and the latest sustainable measures to help the clients’ money to go further. More bang for their buck!
Science-based and human-focused, Affect Community co-create, utilizing sociology and the psychology of space to bring creative, innovative rigor to the process of making cities, urban places and buildings, creating unique, imaginative, playful environments that inspire all that come into contact with them, while meeting our clients’ needs elegantly and congruently, supporting and inspiring our clients, reinforcing their ethics, aims and aspirations.
As a former regional chairman of the Association of Environment Conscious Building and having worked on numerous environmentally conscious projects, panels and Government initiatives around the UK and in Europe, I tell you unequivocally that whatever you are doing, it must be sustainable. With years of experience in Passivhaus Technology and other environmentally conscious interventions we assist our clients in creating sustainable buildings that can save our clients as much as 80% on their annual running costs. Buildings designed specifically for and in collaboration with their users, environmentally conscious cognitive spaces! We believe we help our client’s evolve their buildings to better suit their user’s needs.
Join the evolution lets co-create some your community space together
process.
Sean E. Jeffries
Sean E. Jeffries BA(Hons) PgDipArch BManDip AA PgCertEd ARB
Founder + Lead Architect + Designer me@affectcommunity.org
The user is the most important part of any successful building, space or place, we are professional co-collaborators
Architecture is a social endeavor, Affect Community is a Social Enterprise!
We are a values driven practice. As a social enterprise we apply commercial strategies to maximize improvements in financial, social and environmental well-being, this includes include maximizing social impact.
Our social goals are embedded in our objective, which differentiates social enterprises from traditional architectural practices, organizations and corporations.
Our main purpose is to promote, encourage, and make social change. Affect Community was created to further our social purpose in a financially sustainable way.
Our very structure is designed to be sustainable, with earned income from successful community projects is reinvested in our mission.
The incentives of affect community are designed such that greater the success of our projects, directly correlates to a greater impact and furthering our goals for places and spaces that help individuals and communities to empower and achieve their own unique goals and aspirations.
Our aim is to do good and to make the world a better place and that makes us feel good x
Affect Community Constitution
Our Belief The practice of architecture is inseparable from the social and economic values of the individuals who practice it and the
society which it sustains
Community The practice is a social enterprise which enables us to reinvest profits back into the practice to enable us to help
communities who would not normally be able to afford professional chartered architects services
Teamwork The partners are paid a capped multiple of the lowest paid architect
Equity Profit is reinvested to enable us to serve more communities and community projects.
Social The practice works only with communities, charities and organisations set up to contribute positively to society and the
environment
Responsibility All employees donate an allocated sum to a charity of their choice