The Royal Society of Ulster Architects (RSUA) invites you to attend its annual conference “Architecture 2026: Home Truths” on 26 March 2026 at Riddel Hall, Queen’s University Belfast.
The architecture of our homes is fundamental to how we live. Do it well, we thrive. Do it poorly, we invite problems.
This conference will delve into the architecture of the home in its many guises – from the rural, to the village, to the town, into suburbia and our city centres.
We are assembling a range of contributors from across the UK and Ireland and beyond to create a day which is thought-provoking, challenging, stimulating and inspirational.
The conference will also be a day for conversation, for meeting and hearing from others who share a passion for housing, for design excellence, for enabling lives full of health and happiness.
Who should attend?
Standard Rate: £140 plus VAT
RSUA Member: £126 plus VAT
Practice Services Scheme Subscriber: £105 plus VAT
Tickets can be purchased here.
A limited number of Student tickets are available. Please get in touch with RSUA on info@rsua.org.uk or 028 9032 3760 to find out more.
Oliver Schulze, Shulze+Grassov
Oliver Schulze is a founding partner of Copenhagen-based practice Schulze+Grassov. In Oliver’s previous work as director at Gehl Architects in Copenhagen, he led a succession of award-winning and high-profile public-space projects around the world. He left Gehl to establish Schulze+Grassov, a design practice working to enhance urban environments. In 2023, Schulze+Grassov launched their strategic framework for Belfast’s waterfront, containing practical design guidance and a toolkit of development options to help balance community, nature, and development.
Mary Arnold Forster, Mary Arnold Forster Architects
Mary worked for 16 years for Dualchas Architects on remote and wild sites all over the highlands and islands of the west coast of Scotland. In 2016 she set up her own practice, Mary Arnold-Forster Architects (MAFA). Through her award-winning work at MAFA, Mary creates quiet, humane, restrained and beautifully-crafted places and spaces based on a rigorous study of site, context, landscape and brief. In 2016, Mary was elected on to the Royal Scottish Academy.
Roisin McCann and Martin Marshall, Marshall McCann Architects
Roisin McCann and Martin Marshall are the brother-sister team who make up Marshall McCann Architects. Roisin is a registered architect and heads up the design and planning aspects of the practice, while Martin’s background as a Passive House Designer brings a technical focus to practice’s focus on sustainability. Marshall McCann Architects are a multi award-winning practice, winning RIAI awarda, a RIBA regional award, and ‘House of the Year Ireland’ in 2019, 2021 & 2023.
Claire Bennie, Founder of Municipal
Claire Bennie is founder of Municipal, advising public sector clients on how to deliver long-lasting, attractive housing for their communities. Before establishing Municipal, Claire was Development Director at Peabody. Claire and her team commissioned and delivered thousands of new homes across London for those on all incomes. Claire trained as an architect and qualified in 1998, practising for about 10 years before switching to the commissioning side. She is a Mayor’s Design Advocate.
Sarah Featherstone, co-Director of Featherstone Young and co-Founder of VeloCity
Sarah is an architect and co-Director of Featherstone Young, and has expertise in place-making and social engagement. She is interested in how architecture can capture the character and identity of a place and stimulate, rather than dictate, social interaction. Sarah is currently working within a multidisciplinary all-women team developing VeloCity, the re-imagining of the village for the 21C, creating new homes and working environments in healthy and socially cohesive places.
Phineas Harper, architectural critic
Phineas Harper is an architectural critic, sculptor and curator. They are the former chief executive of Open City and a regular contributor to the Guardian. They have lectured around the world about housing and sustainable design and given evidence to the House of Lords on the future of British urbanism. They are co-founder of New Architecture Writers, a mentoring programme for aspiring design critics of colour and Turncoats, an events series mixing stand-up comedy and debate about contemporary urban issues. They were previously Deputy Editor of the ARchitectural Review, Deputy Director of the Architecture Foundation and Chief Curator of the Olso Architecture Triennale.
