Architect Wrangling Practice Manager. Brompton Power-cycling. Bestseller Novelist.

Cristina joined MAP Architecture in 2022, after having previously worked in the arts and high end design sector.

Cristina has a degree in Interior Design and Philosophy and a Masters in Applied Philosophy and Cultural Management. After having studied and worked in various countries (including Spain, Greece, USA), Cristina moved to London 7 years ago and worked as a marketing consultant for the arts sector and later as a business developer for a luxury design studio.

Cristina is passionate about how practices can enhance the relationship between clients, users and the environment through high-quality and materially sensitive architecture.

Outside the office, Cristina’s time is spent writing, going to the theatre, opera, gigs and as many art exhibitions as possible.

Multitasking. Life is an adventure. Avid sketcher. Loves hills and attempting triathlons.

Helen joined MAP Architecture in 2022. She brings experience from across a range of sectors having worked in offices in Edinburgh, Berlin and London, from leisure and hospitality to private residential projects and bespoke timber installations.

Helen completed her studies at the University of Edinburgh, where she developed a strong interest in the opportunity for good architectural design to manage extreme environmental conditions to the benefit of those who use it. Her research-by-design thesis was a study of Mumbai and focused on articulating an architecture with a sensitivity to the urban landscape and monsoon flooding conditions, in order to benefit the local people.

In professional practice Helen has developed a passion for sustainable design, creating honest architectural solutions with low carbon materials. Previously Helen has worked on Passivhaus projects and tries to apply these principles to all of her work.

Outside the office, Helen can be found off on cycling adventures and trying to improve her skills on the tennis court.

Timber frame enthusiast. Wellbeing Champ. Maker.

James joined MAP in 2018 and has developed a broad range of experience in Domestic and Educational sectors – from early concept design to on-site delivery and construction.

James loves working closely with clients to understand their hopes and ambitions for a project and believes that the design of buildings, at its best, is inclusive and open to different perspectives and experiences. James has a particular interest in improving how buildings relate to their users’ lifestyles, and improving how buildings perform environmentally.

Alongside architecture, he has led workshops in schools aimed at engaging children from different backgrounds in architecture and making physical models as part of RIBA’s National Schools Programme.

On Sunday evenings James is usually found enjoying his favourite Afrobeats dance class.

High speed draughting. Every day is a leg day. Revit hotshot. Bike destroyer. Team motivator.

Joe studied Architecture and Environmental Engineering at UWE in Bristol before moving to London to work. After taking a short hiatus to travel around the world, Joe completed his academic training at the University of Greenwich and is now studying for his work-based post-graduate diploma in professional practice.

Joe has a breadth of experience across all work stages, at small to medium scales and in a range of sectors with a focus on residential and conservation projects. Having previously worked on larger commercial projects with Stride Treglown, Joe has since developed his expertise working directly with clients on smaller, bespoke residential projects – and is a specialist in 3D digital modelling.

In his spare time, Joe climbs – and works in Borough Market shucking oysters, which he enjoys. He is yet to combine the two, as he fully understands oysters live in the sea and not on cliffs.

Passivhaus guru. Practice chef. Make architecture fun again!

Kai joined MAP in 2024, having recently finished his architecture undergraduate course at the university of Bath. Kai’s final project was a food market, as he loves “fun” architecture and wants to design buildings that uplift people’s everyday lives.

During his studies, Kai had also been involved in community consultations and research projects, interacting with people about the future of their local cities. He is keen on pushing sustainability as a key focus and became a Passivhaus Designer to hone these skills.

Outside of architecture, Kai can be found wandering one of London’s many food markets, filling up on freebies and looking for recipe inspiration. Aside from cooking, Kai enjoys running, although, doing this consecutively gives him a stitch.

Straight into action. Educating the next generation. Bake-off champion. Makes BIM look easy.

Leila joined MAP in 2021, soon after qualifying as an Architect. She is passionate about designing for people and communities in a way that can make a difference. She is interested in community based projects and enjoys working closely with individuals and groups in designing in response to their needs.

The two years prior to joining MAP, Leila worked for a practice in London with a strong focus on BIM and 3D design, meaning that she is especially proficient at Revit. She has great practical experience across a range of project types in the residential, commercial and educational sectors, having also managed a £2.5m extension and refurbishment of a school through construction. She has worked on a variety of work stages, from feasibility studies, to developing planning applications, as well as detailed design for construction.

As well as architecture, Leila loves art and paints in her spare time, specialising in watercolour and oil painting. She is always looking for a way to combine this artistic aspect with her architectural work. She also loves to bake sweet treats and balances out the indulgence with freestyle jumprope workouts!

Idealist. Design guru. Dreamer. Craftsman. Sunny side up.

Matthew is a co-founding partner of MAP, having previously worked for larger architectural practices in the UK and abroad.

Matthew has worked on a wide range of projects in various sectors at both planning and construction phases. He has particular expertise in the residential sector and has led award winning projects for developers, housing associations and local authority clients.

At the other end of the scale, Matthew has a wealth of experience and passion for designing bespoke homes for individual clients. He has a keen eye for detail and - with a background in cabinet-making - he welcomes opportunities to be hands-on during the design and construction process.

Having recently extended his own house, Matthew can often be found in his garden ‘gym’, shifting and shaping a landscape for his two daughters to discover the world in.

Free Range Architecture. Lacrosse champ. Office Master Chef. Agri-Culture. Bargain Hunting.

Natalie joined MAP in 2020, having gained experience at large practices whilst studying architecture at the University of Bath. She loves sustainable design and construction and wants to work on projects that make the world a better place.

Natalie has a keen interest in how building user’s daily lives can be enhanced by interacting with the architecture around them. She likes to design on a small scale from the inside out, focusing on beautiful details. Through her thesis, which combined her passions of sustainable architecture and eco-friendly farming, she explored the use of low-carbon materials – knowledge she aims to use in practice.

In her spare time Natalie loves running, skiing and snowboarding (when she can get to the mountains!) as well as cooking up feasts in the kitchen. She takes frequent visits back to her family farm, where she feels most calm, and is learning to grow her own fruit and vegetables.

Optimist. Office taskmaster and problem solver. King of the dad jokes. People wrangler.

Rob is a co-founding partner of MAP, having formerly plied his trade in both larger and small practices.

For the last 7 years he has been based in London working on a range of education and museum sector projects, including the National Maritime Museum Conservation Centre and an award-winning, multi-million pound campus redevelopment for the University of Hertfordshire.

Rob has also worked abroad, including in Nicaragua, Uganda and the UAE - and enthusiastically explores ways to develop MAP's voluntary design-and-build work with local communities.

When not absorbed by taking care of his young family, Rob can be found out running or tending his veg patch– cultivating the perfect surroundings for summer (or winter!) barbecues.

Architecture in detail. Oil painting master. Dance it out!

Sunniva joined MAP in 2024, shortly after completing her undergraduate degree at the University of Sheffield. Sunniva strives to make a positive social and environmental impact through design to ultimately enhance people's lives. Throughout her studies, she has developed a particular interest in sustainable design and retrofit. Her final year project retrofitted a former archive building into a vibrant, community-based Botanical Centre. This design aims to enhance biodiversity and uses sustainable technologies such as passive stack ventilation and a demountable timber structure.

In her spare time, she loves creating artwork, specialising in oil painting portraiture, varying from realism to more contemporary styles. She also enjoys knitting clothes, dance-based fitness and has a lot of social involvement and outreach within her church.

Lancashire hotpot. Furniture forager. Low-carbon architecture. Self-build pavilion leader.

Vincent joined MAP in 2021 after completing his Part 2 architectural masters at Newcastle University. He especially enjoys experimenting with his hand drawn approach to representing architecture.

Vincent is passionate about how architects can think more ecologically, being both a member of the Architects Climate Action Network, and co-founder of the Newcastle Students Climate Action Network.

Vincent is a keen problem solver and enjoys getting stuck into the details of architectural design. While studying at Newcastle, Vincent was project manager on a pavilion live build which championed design for repair, low-impact specification, and computer aided manufacture. Over two thousand pieces of timber were varnished by hand for the project.

Outside of architecture, Vincent likes to go to music gigs, loves skiing, and hiking in the Lake District.