Episode 29:

Hello and Welcome to the Part3 with me podcast, 

The show that helps part 3 students jump start into their careers as qualified architects and also to provide refresher episodes for practicing architects. I am your host Maria Skoutari following on from last weeks episode, this week, we’ll be talking about RIBA Work Stages 0-3 and next week we will cover Stages 4-7 — PC2 - Clients, users and delivery of services of the Part 3 Criteria.

Following on from last weeks episode, today we will be expanding further into the RIBA Plan of Work, and more specifically on each of the RIBA Work Stages. 

As mentioned last week, the RIBA Work stages consist of 8 distinct Stages ranging from Stage 0 to Stage 7. 

All 8 stages have been designed and set by the RIBA to act together to inform the briefing, design, construction, handover and use of a building and to help anyone involved in a building project from an experienced designer through to a client undertaking their first project. 

Let’s start with Stage 0: Strategic Definition

So who needs to be involved at this stage: At this stage, the client team will need to be appointed, which I expanded on in the previous episode, but the team may seek professional services or advice from external consultants to help them develop the Client Requirements and Business Case they wish to achieve with the project. 

The key aim and outcome from Stage 0 is to outline the initial strategy and viability of the project and that it will meet the Client’s Requirements. So Stage 0’s Core Tasks are focused on making the right key decisions with the client in putting together their Business Case, this involves considering the Project Risks (e.g. circumstances that may effect meeting the Clients Requirements), and Budget, and if deemed necessary to carry out the necessary site surveys to determine the projects viability in terms of planning in delivering the best option that meets the Client’s Requirements. So at this stage you may put together some high-level Spatial Requirements to inform the Budget. Stage 0 provides the opportunity to refine and better inform the Project Brief and improve design and building quality that will be developed further in the next stages. 

Now when it comes to specific project strategy tasks, Cost, Fire Strategy, Health and Safety, Inclusive Design, Planning, Plan for Use and Sustainability should be considered even as high-level at this stage. This may not form part of the core tasks set out on the Work Stages template, but they are additional tasks the RIBA highly advises client, design and construction teams to consider when going through the various stages of progression of a project. 

So starting with Cost, the client team will be preparing a rough cost estimate at this stage which captures high level calculations of the Project Budget to meet the Client Requirements taking into consideration any Project Risks. This might be in the form of estimated cost per square metre or by project type, e.g. residential based on previous experience and size. This can then be used for the initial Project Budget.

Then for Fire Safety, although it may be very early in the process to determine this, the client team can simply consider some initial site appraisals to determine the high level fire safety suitability of the site against the Client Requirements particularly in relation to access and facilities for fire services and means of escape because if for any reason access to the site is very limited then access considerations will need to be appraised from the very start for the scheme to be viable not only from a fire safety perspective but also in terms of health and safety and inclusive design. 

So when it comes to Health and Safety, this can be to gather existing health and safety information about the site or existing buildings, which can include the Health and safety File if an existing building is present to identify any significant risks to health and safety e.g. the presence of asbestos. The client should also start considering their duties under the CDM Regulations 2015.

Next is Inclusive Design considerations to be identified and set out within the Project Outcomes and Client Requirements. As mentioned previously, access to the site will need to be assessed to identify any Project risks which may affect the delivery of the Client Requirements for inclusive design. 

Then for planning, the client team should undertake a strategic planning appraisal of the site its immediate and wider context identifying the planning policy context, site designations, site history and so on that may bring to light potential Project risks. At this point is where some clients may seeks external professional advice outside their team in bring on an architect to do an initial high-level assessment to determine the viability of the site in terms of planning restrictions or constraints. 

And looking ahead to the Plan for Use, the client team may explore opportunities for links to other projects or programmes to improve efficiencies and review any implications for the scope of the Client Requirements and Business Case. Under this strategic task the client team can review opportunities and identify Project Risks associated with potential future changes of use, operating hours and any specific user or tenant requirements that might effect in-use performance. 

And lastly, looking into the sustainability strategy, the client team will need to develop high level Sustainability Outcomes that will need to be defined under the Client Requirements for the design team to address when they come on board. The client will need to assess the sustainability opportunities and constraints of the potential site and building assets also informed by previous Post Occupancy Evaluation Feedback carried out from previous projects to improve on on the new project. 

Now moving onto Stage 1: Preparation and Briefing

So who needs to be involved at this stage: At this stage, we continue with the client team and a few external professionals may be brought in to advise to help develop the Project Brief and to put together Feasibility Studies to assess key Project Risks identified from Stage 0. Although it may seem like it, stage 1 is not necessarily a design stage but it is more about layering detail and requirements into the Project Brief before commencing Stage 2. The selection process of the design team should commence at this stage ready for Stage 2. 

The key aim and outcome from Stage 1 is to outline the Project Brief, approved by the client and confirmed it can be accommodated on the site. So Stage 1’s Core Tasks are focused on refining the Client Requirements into the Project Brief which in turn will contain guidance on the Project Outcomes, Sustainability Outcomes and Quality Aspirations. These may influence how the client, design and construction teams are assembled to form the project team as part of the Procurement Strategy and may inform core milestones in the Project Programme. As part of Stage 1, Feasibility Studies may be needed to determine that the Spatial Requirements can be accommodated on the site - these should be purely used for illustrative purposes at this stage to assist in shaping the Project Brief and inform the requirements for the Stage 2 design process. In preparation for Stage 2, a Responsibilities Matrix should be prepared to clarify what tasks will be assigned to each consultant and what they will be expected to deliver through the various stages. A Project Execution Plan should also be prepared alongside a Digital Execution Plan to allow the design team to set out how they will produce the information. All relevant site information should be collated in preparation for issue to the design team at Stage 2. 

Now when it comes to specific project strategy tasks, Cost, Fire Strategy, Health and Safety, Inclusive Design, Planning, Plan for Use and Sustainability should be considered in more depth at this stage.

So starting with Cost, the client team will prepare cost estimates to test the feasibility of achieving the Project Brief and breakdown any elements or categories identified from the feasibilities as significant cost-related Project Risks and consider the risk profile of potential market changes and inflation impact. 

Then for Fire Safety, following the initial evaluation at Stage 0, the fire strategy is developed further to inform the Project Brief and to include initial fire safety measures such as access and facilities for fire services and the number and location of cores. Then key Project Stakeholders, such as building users or residents should provide relevant feedback on access requirements, building use, and maintenance requirements to further inform the Project Brief. Then using the Feasibility Studies the client team will be able to confirm that the Project Brief can be accommodated on the site in accordance with the fire safety requirements. 


So when it comes to Health and Safety, the information gathered from Stage 0 should be used to inform the Feasibility Studies which in turn will inform the initial collation, review and distribution of the Pre-Construction Information and establish the design risk management processes. The Health and Safety objectives should then be incorporated in the Project Brief and the CDM duty holders should be identified and the relevant designers and principal designer are appointed. 

Next is Inclusive Design Project stakeholders will further inform the inclusive design needs alongside the feasibility studies and these should be included within the Project Brief. Then site information relevant to inclusive design (e.g too survey) should be sourced and available to provide to the design team at Stage 2.

Then for planning, the next step for Stage 1 would be to undertake a site appraisal that can be given to a Planning Consultant to provide some pre-design Planning Advice to identify local planning policy related to any potential Project Risks that can then inform the Feasibility Studies. The Feasibility Studies can then test the Project Brief against the planning constraints and determine that the Quality Aspirations for the scheme are still being met and develop a planning brief incorporating planning policy principles, planning strategy and so on to better inform the Project Brief. This assessment will also determine any requirements for an Environmental Impact Assessment, listed building consent, requirements for either full or outline planning and so on. 

And looking ahead to the Plan for Use, the client team would have received Feedback from lessons learned on previous projects that can inform the Project Brief that will assist in establishing measurable targets for environmental performance, amenity and comfort. The lessons learned from previous projects will also set out the requirements for the Post Occupancy Evaluation, handover and aftercare, maintenance and facilities management taking whole-life costs into consideration.  

And lastly, looking into the sustainability strategy, using Feedback from the Post Occupancy Evaluation will better inform the Sustainability Outcomes for this scheme to be set out within the Project Brief, then using the feasibility studies the Sustainability Outcomes can be tested and verified if they can be achieved on the site within the Project Budget. Local authority sustainability requirements should also be verified alongside any certification requirements.

Now moving onto Stage 2: Concept Design

So who needs to be involved at this stage: At this stage, the design team is officially appointed alongside any additional specialist consultants that may be required to achieve an Architectural Concept that is robust and aligned with the Project Brief. Under some procurement routes the construction team may also be engaged in this stage. 

The key aim and outcome from Stage 2 is for the Architectural Concept to be aligned with the Project Brief and to be approved by the client. So Stage 2’s Core Tasks are focused on the proposals to be in alignment with the Site Information and Project Brief. Regular Design Review meetings should be scheduled in to present the proposals and received feedback from the client and any other Project stakeholders involved. During this process any Project Brief Derogations are agreed or the Project Brief is adjusted to align with them. The Architectural Concept should be iterated to allow input from all design teams members and specialist consultants and coordinated with the Project Strategies. Everything should then be captured within a Stage Report to be signed off by the client at the end of the Stage. The Cost Plan should also be revised regularly to reflect the Architectural Concept and Outline Specification and that they are aligned with the Project Budget. In order to move to Stage 3 seamlessly, the proposals should demonstrate that the Spatial Requirements are being achieved, everything is coordinated between all design team members and specialist consultants, externally the building meets the vision of the client as well as the demands of the local context and environment, and that the concept is inline with the clients Quality Aspirations. At this stage the client may wish to seek pre-application Planning Advice to determine the suitability of the initial proposal with the relevant local authority. It is wise at this stage to prepare a Design Programme to be in line with the Project Programme and Responsibilities Matrix to guide the design process and to ensure the Information Requirements are included within the Stage Report.  

Now when it comes to specific project strategy tasks, Cost, Fire Strategy, Health and Safety, Inclusive Design, Planning, Plan for Use and Sustainability should be considered in more depth at this stage.

So starting with Cost, the client team will prepare a more formal Cost Plan which takes into account the initial design parameters established by the Architectural Concept and Strategic Engineering requirements also including any significant elements of cost and initial bulk quantities of key items set out in the Outline Specification. Any cost implications arising from the Architectural Concept should be reviewed and checked against the Project Outcomes, Procurement Strategy, Project Programme and Project Risks making sure the Architectural Concept and Outline Specification are aligned with the Project Budget. 

Then for Fire Safety, following the feedback from the key Project Stakeholders at Stage 1, the Architectural Concept should be developed to meet these comments, align with the fire safety strategy and the Project Briefing identifying the means of escape, external fire spread and access and facilities for the fire service. Make sure a section within the Stage Report outlines the key fire safety decisions in the fire safety strategy. 

So when it comes to Health and Safety, the design risk management processes identified at Stage 1 should be implemented on addressing significant and unusual foreseeable health and safety hazards and wherever possible these should be eliminated or at least reduced and coordinate the matters in the Architectural Concept and Outline Specification, aligned with the other Project Strategies and Project Brief. Following that process, the Pre-Construction Information should be updated to be in-line with the relevant design development of the Architectural Concept and a Health and Safety File should have been initiated. Similarly to Fire Safety, a record of key health and safety decisions should be included within the Stage Report. 

Next is Inclusive Design, the site information relevant to inclusive design sourced as Stage 1 should be used to develop the inclusive design concept and review it against the Project Brief with input from Project Stakeholders, specialist consultants and the local authority. The inclusive design concept should then be implemented into the Architectural Concept, Outline Specification and Strategic Engineer requirements. 

Then for planning, the pre-application advice would have been obtained during Stage 2 outlining the suitability of the initial proposal. The proposal should then be presented to the Project Stakeholders and use Design Reviews to seek comments on the Architectural Concept proposals in terms of scale, complexity and sensitivity to the local context and environment. The Architectural Concept should then be adapted to accommodate input from specialist consultants (e.g transport, ecologist, etc.). Draft a Design and Access statement and assess any possible section 106 contributions and community infrastructure levy requirements. 

And looking ahead to the Plan for Use, seek feedback from Project Stakeholders to gather further lessons learned and produce a record of performance risks. This will assist in finalising the Post Occupancy Evaluation, handover and Aftercare. Review the Architectural Concept against the end-user, operation and maintenance building performance requirements and whole-life costs. Alight this strategy with the Sustainability Strategy, Cost Plan, metering, site waste and other Project Strategies and confirm that Facilities Management plans are in place and appropriate to the project.   

And lastly, looking into the sustainability strategy, incorporate lessons learnt from the Post Occupancy Evaluation Feedback received during Stage 1 and review precedents when developing the Architectural Concept. Consider benchmarking and quality assurance requirements in initial design work, the carry out energy and other modelling to test and refine the Architectural Concept, Sustainability Strategy and delivery of the Sustainability Outcomes. Include the process within the Stage Report. 

And now moving onto the final Stage for today’s episode Stage 3: Spatial Coordination 

So who needs to be involved at this stage: At this stage, the design team is the key protagonist. The client team are also involved where Stage 3 coordination requires client decisions. The construction team may also be involved at this stage if the selected procurement route requires early contractor or specialist subcontractor input. 

The key aim and outcome from Stage 3 is for the Architectural Concept to be tested and validated in order to confirm that the architectural and engineering information prepared at Stage 2 is Spatially Coordinated before the detailed information required to manufacture and construct is produced for Stage 4. So the Architectural Concept is ratified during Stage 3 and to add further detail. The key thing to remember is that at Stage 3 the Architectural Concept should’t necessarily be altered, the aim of Stage 3 is to provide further detailed design and information that have resulted in the coordination between the design and engineering process. If for any reasons changes are required to the Architectural Concept at Stage 3, these should be agreed through the Change Control Procedure. Design iterations may be required to ensure the Cost Plan Aligns with the project budget. A Spatially Coordinated design allows each designer to finalise their information at Stage without major iterations of the design. The Project Strategies will therefore need to be updated and additional information added and reviewed against Building Regulations. At the end of Stage 3, the Stage Report should be approved and signed off by the client allowing for a Planning Application to be submitted. Something to highlight here, is that sometimes you may notice that some projects are submitted at Stage 2, if this is the case a mid-stage gateway should be set to focus on the tasks necessary to ensure that all the information required for the application is undertaken and achieved and that the design is robust enough for development once planning consent is granted. Another scenario you may have come across is that the Employer’s Requirements are issued at the end of Stage 3 instead of 4 which may result in some elements of design to be drawing to a higher level of detail with additional schedules and specifications to help remove risks from the procurement process and set the Quality Aspirations.  

Now when it comes to specific project strategy tasks, Cost, Fire Strategy, Health and Safety, Inclusive Design, Planning, Plan for Use and Sustainability should be considered in more depth at this stage.

So starting with Cost, the Cost Consultant will carry out Cost Exercises to allow more detailed aspects of the design, Project Strategies and Outline Specification to be tested using the Design Studies and by involving suppliers or specialist subcontractors to determine affordability and checking them against the Project Outcomes. This in return will feed into the Cost Plan increasing the levels of cost certainty to meet the Project Budget. 

Then for Fire Safety, further design studies and engineering analysis should be undertaken with input from end users, facilities managers and so on to refine and integrate the fire safety strategy and measures into the Spatially Coordinated design. A review should then be undertaken against Part B, Part A, Part M and Regulation 7 of the Building Regulations to determine compliance with input from the building control body and fire rescue authority. Any identified risks from fire safety should be recorded and any deviation from the Fire Safety Strategy should be recorded within the Stage Report. Then input and responsibilities from specialist subcontractors should be established to inform the Procurement Strategy. 

So when it comes to Health and Safety, similarly to Fire Safety, further design studies and engineering analysis should be undertaken to eliminate or reduce residual risks to health and safety. The Design Risk Management Consideration first established from Stage 1 should be adapted and integrated into the Spatially Coordinated design also recording any control measures within the Pre-Construction Information in line with the relevant design development. This information should be included within the Stage Report and input and responsibilities from specialist subcontractors should be established to inform the Procurement Strategy.

Next is Inclusive Design, the Spatially Coordinated design should be reviewed against Part M of the Building Regulations and the Equality Act. Further design studies and engineering analysis should then be undertaken to test and develop the inclusive design requirements in more detail with input from Project stakeholders. Then identify and record any Project Risks from the additional analysis and feedback and mitigation any deviation from the Inclusive Design Strategy and include within the Stage Report. And as part of the Planning submission prepare the design and access statement. 

Then for planning, following the pre-application advice received at Stage 2, if applicable, you can integrate any advice received into the Spatially Coordinated design and also undertake a review of the design against the Building Regulations. Then prepare the necessary supporting planning documents, e.g. environmental impact assessment, heritage statement, and so on to support the planning application. But before you submit, first you must establish likely Planning Conditions, including pre-commencement and post completion Planning Conditions and confirm any section 106 contributions and community infrastructure levy requirements to accompany the application. Then you can proceed to submit the planning application once the Spatially Coordinated design is sufficiently developed with only minor iterations required once planning consent is achieved. 

And looking ahead to the Plan for Use, develop further design studies and engineering analysis to test the building performance requirements and conclude the Design Reviews with input from end users, facilities managers, design consultants and so on to ratify the design from an end-user perspective. The building performance requirements should then in return be integrated into the Spatially Coordinated Design aligned to the Project Stakeholder consultation and feedback. The Post Occupancy Evaluation, handover and after should be included in the Procurement Strategy and updated to inform the Stage 4 tasks and deliverables. 

And lastly, looking into the sustainability strategy, following the lessons learnt and building performance requirements established by the Plan for Use strategy, design studies and engineering analysis should be undertaken to also test the sustainability outcomes and integrated into the Spatially Coordinated design with the sustainability outcomes outlined within the Stage Report identifying any performance risks to inform Stage 4 tasks and deliverables and to mitigate any deviation from the Sustainability Outcomes. 

So to sum up what I discussed today:

To make sure you have considered everything for each stage you should consider looking into the RIBA checklists on the RIBA website provided for for free, which are a very useful tool in making sure you do the required tasks for each Stage. Check the link in the episode notes to access them. 

Stay tuned for next weeks episode where I will be expanding into the RIBA Work Stages 4-7.