Firstly, a big thank you to all who participated in Wear it Pink and donating to Breast Cancer Now on Friday. What a glorious sight, I’m sure you’d all agree! The day of wearing pink was followed by a great evening of presentations, Diwali celebrations, food, drinks… and foosball.

Jonathan kicked off the evening with a presentation on UCL Laws (section below). He first explained the history of the two buildings that make up the Faculty, one of which is Grade II listed, and their lack of cohesion. Our design response joins them together through an atrium to improve access with other measures to rationalise the spaces, behind a newly unified street façade. He then went on to show recent site photos to illustrate how construction is progressing.

This was followed by a brief talk from Jo on our studio’s visit to Second Home, Shoreditch, a members-only workspace designed by Spanish architects SelgasCano of Serpentine Pavilion 2015 fame (the colourful one). The space, though having low ceilings, allowed natural light throughout with its transparent curved walls dividing the spaces, designed in a way to make people ‘bump into’ each other and help form connections. A café/bar, free events and the statistic of businesses growing ten times faster than the national average make it very desirable indeed.

Joe C then announced the fundraising total from his two half marathons – a whopping £720 for Shelter! He did a raffle (with a twist) for two chances to win Uncle Joe’s mint balls – congratulations to lucky winners Iwona and Rose S.

Finally, Vinesh rounded things up with a brief talk about the festival of Diwali, before we all got stuck into some tasty Indian treats, drinks and tunes.