Derek joined Smith Caradoc-Hodgkins Architects in 2002 and is now an Associate Director and manager of telecommunications and technical support. Receiving his BA from the University of Sheffield, he continued his architectural education at the University of Manchester, the Universitat politècnica de Catalunya, Barcelona, and the South Bank University, London.
He is interested in original and simple designs to small, complex sites and specialises in refurbishment works on existing buildings, many of them listed and renowned or prestigious.
Derek has worked with a variety of building types in urban areas of architectural complexity which have required a high level of environmental and social sensitivity. He supports sustainable design solutions and successfully completed a significant development of eco homes in Oxfordshire that utilised locally sourced, recycled materials, rainwater recycling and micro generation.
With Smith Caradoc-Hodgkins Architects he has consistently produced imaginative responses to challenging briefs. He has been project architect on a variety of developments including the creation of new live recording studios for MTV in Leicester Square, and Coventry House (a major residential scheme in London’s Haymarket) along with various sympathetic and modern extensions to large houses for private clients.
Currently, Derek is responsible for the Mercer’s Company- Covent Garden Portfolio, a combination of new development and refurbishment work on listed buildings in an urban conservation area. He also leads a team of architects on the Sanctum Soho Hotel project in Warwick Street, Soho, the conversion of a listed building from an office into a boutique hotel.