FAQ

• Choose your architect using find an architect.
• Click ‘book a consultation’. This will bring you to the RSUA website where you can make a donation of £50 to secure your consultation.
• As long as you book before the initiative closes your chosen architect will be in touch with you to organise your consultation at a date that suits.

The architect will also arrange:

the location of the consultation (in the architect’s office/at your house/virtual/on site)
for you to get the most out of your consultation, perhaps by preparing your thoughts or thinking about your requirements

Ask an Architect is an annual Northern Ireland-wide charity fundraising event. Professional chartered architects in every corner of Northern Ireland volunteer their time and expertise allowing you to book a consultation with an architect of your choice, in your locality, all while raising funds for the Friends of the Cancer Centre. 100% of funds raised will go to assist research into finding a cure for cancer, conducted in the Cancer Centre of excellence at Belfast City Hospital.

It’s very simple…

For the public:

Book an hour-long, personal consultation with an architect. From a small renovation or extension to a whole new-build, your project can be of any size or scale. You can get an architect on board at any stage of your project, to help at the earliest conceptual stages or the last moments of problem-solving.

Businesses:

ask an architect is not only for residential clients – if you are considering work on your commercial premises you can go through ask an architect as a way to realise your ambitions and give back to your community. ask an architect also makes a great cause for sponsorship, connecting your business to the local architectural community and clients involved in building.

Thanks to the support of our sponsors, 100% of donations we receive go to the Jill Todd Trust and Friends of the Cancer Centre. If you’re interested in sponsoring the event, contact us at info@askanarchitect-ni.com and we can have a chat.
Architects: Pledge at least three hours of your time during the ask an architect initiative. Email us at info@askanarchitect-ni.com to sign up.

Of course, all funds raised are much appreciated, so even if you don’t book a consultation, you can donate directly to the Jill Todd Trust at this link, or you could hold a fundraiser. If you have any questions, just get in touch at info@askanarchitect-ni.com

Thanks to the generosity of ‘Ask an Architect’ donors and sponsors, 100% of funds raised will go to the Centre for Cancer Research and Cell Biology at Belfast City Hospital. Funds raised will go to assist research conducted into finding a cure for cancer.

Architects bring value to projects large and small and the RSUA website has more information, but as a starter your architect can:

• Help you achieve your aspirations and vision
• Provide new creative solutions
• Add value to your project through good design and sound construction
• Guide you through the design and construction process
• Give you peace of mind

At your consultation, the architect can advise on any size of building project from a loft conversion to a new build (domestic, commercial or civic). Some things you might discuss:

• Information on building costs or construction techniques
• Discussion on building materials likely to be used
• Planning requirements or Planning Exempt Development.
• The documents that will be used for planning; tenders; and building contracts
• The potential pitfalls or opportunities that comes with a building project
• Guidance on architect’s fees and services
• Architect Aisling Shannon Rusk wrote a blog post for us, explaining the kinds of things she discusses in consultations with clients.

Friends of the Cancer Centre has a long and proud history of helping local cancer patients across Northern Ireland over the last 30 years. Based at the heart of the Cancer Centre at Belfast City Hospital, the charity funds life-saving and life-changing projects that make a real and lasting difference to the lives of thousands of local people affected by cancer and in the last year alone, Friends of the Cancer Centre has invested nearly £1.2 million into local cancer services.

£50 is the minimum donation but you are welcome to donate more!

The architect you book with will contact you to agree when and where your consultation will take place. Your architect will let you know if it would be beneficial to bring anything along. Here are some examples of things that your architect might talk to you about:

• An Ordnance Survey ACE Map showing your property – This can be obtained from Land + Property Services, 7 Lanyon Place, Belfast BT1 3LP Or online at www.nidirect.gov.uk/OSNI
• Photographs of the property and its surroundings.
• Dimensions of the existing property if you’re considering building an extension.
• Dimensions of a site if you’re considering a new build.
• A list of accommodation that is required, for example, details such as number of occupants and the function of the particular rooms.
• Images of similar properties that you admire.
  An indication of your building cost budget.

Relax – your architect will be in touch to arrange a date and time for your consultation within two business days, but please make an allowance for public holidays, including St Patrick’s Day, Easter and the May Day Bank Holiday. If you haven’t yet heard from your architect, just get in touch by e-mailing julia@rsua.org.uk.

If your question hasn’t been answered here, please contact RSUA:

by phone on 028 9032 3760
by email at info@askanarchitect-ni.com