An innovative architecture practice is revolutionising the way people renovate their homes.

Architectyourhome was set up in 2000 by Hugo Tugman and his wife Jude who met and trained as architects at Brighton Polytechnic in the late Eighties.

The idea was to encourage more people to hire architects for small domestic projects like loft conversions, extensions, open-planning or kitchen installations.

Most people never consult an architect because of fears about cost and control and many architects are unwilling to undertake small-budget work.

Hugo and Jude have made it easier for people to calculate the cost of hiring an architect by breaking down the fee into bite-size pieces.

Clients are given a menu of services which allows them to choose what they want the architect to do and what they are prepared to do themselves.

Hugo said: "We have turned architecture into a commodity the consumer can understand.

"It also means people know exactly what they are paying for at the beginning. Fear of losing control of a project and spiralling costs have put people off using architects in the past but here there is absolute clarity and people are responding to that.

"It means when someone is thinking about having a loft conversion they don't have to have the same one as everybody else in the street.

"The old school has been remarkably positive about the project.

"Architects care deeply about the built environment but, at the same time, what people do with their own homes is really up to them. It's their money."

Architectyourhome was conceived as a bolt-on service to Hugo and Jude's own architecture practice in Bath but has grown to become a UK-wide network of licensed practices.

This year has seen the launch of ArchitectyourhomeBrighton and ArchitectyourhomeSussex, adding to operations in Bath, London, The Wirral, Nottingham and Leeds.

Architectyourhome guarantees licensees a certain amount of work a year and carries out all the marketing work in return for a small slice of the architect's fee.

The service is designed to satisfy a huge, untapped market of small projects being refused by traditional architect firms not equipped to handle them profitably.

About 92 per cent of building work in the UK does not involve an architect.

The most popular service is the half-day consultation, a four-hour site visit at a fee of £400 in which an architect comes to your home to discuss your project.

He or she will measure up, draw sketch layouts and prepare outline proposals. You will be sent a set of drawings and an independently-costed quote.

Hugo said: "Some people build up a close working relationship with the architect and they see the project through to the end, others just want the draughtsmanship of a qualified architect.

"Either way is fine."

Tuesday, December 13, 2005