CSK Architects
CSK Architects is a UK-based architectural practice of 12 architects specialising in heritage retrofit, conservation, and carbon-negative plant-based construction (cork, hempcrete) for residential, educational, and institutional clients across London and the South East.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2016
- HeadquartersEton, United Kingdom
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingServices
What CSK Architects does
CSK Architects is a privately held UK architectural practice of 12 architects, headquartered in Eton, Berkshire with a residential satellite office in Bradford on Avon. Originally operating as Corrigan + Soundy + Kilaiditi Architects, the firm was relaunched as CSK Architects Ltd in 2016 when its founding partners retired and three new directors (Dido Milne, Justyn Turnbull, Gavin Eyles) assumed control. The practice operates across three core service areas - Retrofit at Home (bespoke residential architecture including deep retrofit and sensitive heritage renovations), Retrofit at Work (commercial, education and estate-led retrofits with listed-building consent expertise) and New Building Lifecycles (new build with plant-based and circular materials) - unified by an internal 'Whole Life Approach' methodology that addresses embodied carbon, operational energy, material systems and design for disassembly.
The practice's technical differentiator lies in proprietary plant-based construction systems, principally a self-build cork construction kit (prefabricated off-site, mortar- and glue-free, carbon-negative at completion) and a hempcrete construction system that has achieved an IStructE A+ rating for lifetime embodied carbon. Co-Director Matthew Barnett Howland leads an R&D arm in partnership with the Bartlett School of Architecture UCL, University of Bath, Amorim UK, Ty-Mawr, Arup and BRE, with funding from Innovate UK and EPSRC. The CSK RECLAIM initiative (formalised 2016) and the Granite Futures / Re-use Portal partnership with Westminster Council, Arts University Bournemouth and Webb Yates Engineers extend the practice's material research into circular-economy stone re-use.
Revenue is generated almost exclusively through bespoke professional fees for architectural design, interior design and project management, with the majority of commissions sourced via director-led direct engagement, repeat clients and referrals rather than competitive tenders. The customer base spans London estates (Cadogan, Howard-de-Walden), educational institutions (Eton College, Royal Holloway, Imperial College London, Buckinghamshire Chilterns University, Holyport College), healthcare regulators (General Dental Council, Procter and Gamble healthcare projects), finance (HSBC) and private residential clients. Geographic scope is the UK only - principally London, the Home Counties, the Cotswolds and Berkshire - and the firm has not disclosed external investment, parent ownership or public listing.
CSK Architects firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- CSK Architects
- Legal name
- CSK Architects Ltd
- Website
- https://cskarchitects.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2016
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- CSK Architects is a UK-based architectural practice of 12 architects specialising in heritage retrofit, conservation, and carbon-negative plant-based construction (cork, hempcrete) for residential, educational, and institutional clients across London and the South East.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
CSK Architects industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Architectural Services
- NAICS
- Architectural Services (54131), Interior Design Services (54141)
- SIC
- Services-Engineering Services (8711)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Architectural Design Services (BPAHAKAA)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting (BPAHAKAG), Interior Design Services (BPAHAKAB)
Keywords
Where CSK Architects is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Eton
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices2 records
Markets served
CSK Architects business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Architectural Design Services: Full-service architectural practice providing bespoke design services across residential (retrofit and new build), commercial, education, healthcare, and conservation sectors. Revenue generated through professional fees for architectural design, interior design, and project management services.
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels4 records
CSK Architects product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CSK Architects is a private architectural practice providing bespoke design services across residential retrofit, commercial and institutional retrofit, and sustainable new construction. The firm delivers whole life carbon-focused architectural design, interior design, and project management for private clients, estates, educational institutions, and commercial organisations. Revenue is generated through professional service fees for these bespoke architectural commissions.
Product overview
CSK Architects is an architectural practice offering three core service areas: Retrofit at Home (bespoke residential architecture including deep retrofit and sensitive renovations), Retrofit at Work (commercial and institutional retrofits for historic buildings), and New Building Lifecycles (sustainable new construction). These are unified by the Whole Life Approach methodology considering embodied carbon, operational energy, and circular economy principles. The CSKRECLAIM initiative formalizes their reclaimed materials sourcing. The practice also applies the Form Follows Lifecycle design methodology developed by Director Matthew Barnett Howland, exploring bio-renewable materials and carbon-negative construction.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- CSK RECLAIM: A practice initiative focused on sourcing and integrating reclaimed materials into projects, aligning with circular economy construction principles. Developed organically from the practice's ongoing interest in building life cycles and material resource flows.
Products and services
- Retrofit at Home Bespoke residential architecture services creating exceptional homes through deep retrofit, large extensions, and light-touch sensitive renovations using forms and materials sympathetic to historic fabric. For private individuals and families seeking homes that combine architectural design with environmental sustainability.
- Retrofit at Work Complex retrofits for London Estates, colleges, universities, schools, and businesses acting as long-term custodians of historic buildings. Specialises in listed building consents, heritage conservation, restoration, and adaptive reuse.
- New Building Lifecycles New build architectural services using materials and processes that acknowledge the interconnected relationship between building life cycle and earth systems, with focus on sustainability, low embodied carbon, and circular economy principles.
- CSKRECLAIM Formalised initiative to source and integrate reclaimed materials into architectural projects, supporting clients with bespoke spaces through imaginative re-use of existing resources and alignment with circular economy construction principles.
- Conservation Architecture Heritage conservation, restoration, and adaptive reuse services for listed buildings and historic structures, with expertise in Grade I, II, and II* listed buildings, AONBs, Green Belt, and Conservation Areas. Includes listed building consent applications and specialist planning work.
- In-House Interior Design In-house interior design service allowing the practice to deliver a cohesive vision from concept to completion, integrating with the architectural design process.
Quantifiable outcome
- 69% reduction in CO2 emissions achieved at Chestnuts, Royal Holloway
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use CSK Architects
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
CSK Architects technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
CSK Architects partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
17 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- The Bartlett School of Architecture UCLcoreResearch partnership on Cork House project and ongoing material research. Led by Matthew Barnett Howland as director of MPH Architects, with project team including UCL, University of Bath, Amorim UK and Ty-Mawr, with subcontractors including Arup and BRE. Research part-funded by Innovate UK and EPSRC under the 2015 Building Whole Life Performance funding competition.
- University of BathcoreResearch partner on Cork House project as part of the 2015 Building Whole Life Performance funding competition.
- Amorim UKcoreCork materials supplier for Cork House and sponsor for Seoul Biennale memorial installation. Expanded cork blocks sourced from biodiverse landscape.
- Ty-MawrcoreConstruction partner for Cork House project, providing expertise in sustainable building materials.
- ArupcoreStructural engineering and fire strategy consultancy for Cork House and Cork Warehouse Hamburg project.
- Structure WorkshopcoreStructural engineering collaboration on New Model Barn project, designing timber frame with cast hempcrete.
- The Stonemasonry Company LtdcoreCollaboration on Re-use Portal project and Granite Futures project for stone re-use from historic buildings.
- Webb Yates EngineerscoreEngineering consultancy on Re-use Portal and Granite Futures circular economy stone re-use projects.
- Sophie ParmentercoreCo-design partner for National Autistic Society Garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024.
- Landform ConsultantscoreManaged the build for National Autistic Society Garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024.
- Project Giving BackcoreSponsor for National Autistic Society Garden at RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024.
- Westminster CouncilminorCollaboration partner for Granite Futures project to re-use approx. 400 granite blocks from Victoria Embankment.
- Arts University BournemouthminorCollaboration partner for Granite Futures project developing design to re-use granite blocks from Victoria Embankment.
- A+ArchitectureminorPre-assembled Seoul Biennale memorial installation in Portugal.
- Waltham Place FarmcoreCollaboration on Hempstore and New Model Barn projects. Farm grows hemp for construction materials and hosts biodynamic farm research.
- The Bartlett UCL (BSEER)coreLab-based hempcrete research project led by Max Dewdney at The Bartlett UCL, with Dr Valentina Marincioni and Dr Virginia Gori at BSEER and Tom Davies at B-made.
- Xylotek LtdminorCollaboration on Woodland Construction Kit project, using prefabricated building components made with timber harvested from the forest on site.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
CSK Architects competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- Allies and Morrison: Major UK architectural practice with broad portfolio including heritage, residential, and masterplanning work, operating at a larger scale but competing for similar institutional and conservation clients.
- Foster + Partners: Global UK-headquartered practice with extensive sustainability commitments; competes for the same institutional, education, and conservation-led commissions at the upper end of the market.
- Purcell: Largest UK heritage architecture specialist with deep listed-building and conservation expertise, competing for the same Grade I/II institutional and ecclesiastical retrofit commissions.
Direct peers
- Feilden Fowles: Award-winning UK architectural practice with a strong sustainability ethos and similar boutique scale, competing in the same cultural and educational building niche with comparable material-driven design approach.
- Haworth Tompkins: Established London practice with strong heritage/conservation credentials and theatre/cultural building portfolio, comparable in scale and listed-building retrofit expertise.
- John Pardey Architects: UK practice specialising in sustainable, contextually-driven residential architecture with comparable focus on low-energy design and country/edge-of-settlement sites.
- Bere:architects: Award-winning UK sustainable practice with similar interest in natural materials and Passivhaus/low-energy design, comparable in size and ethos to CSK.
- Cottrell & Vermeulen Architecture: Sustainable UK practice with strong education sector portfolio and timber/whole-life carbon expertise, directly comparable to CSK's education and conservation work.
- Mikhail Riches: London-based sustainable architectural practice with comparable focus on low-carbon residential and retrofit work, sharing CSK's ethos of social and environmental sustainability in design.
- Studio Bark: UK practice specialising in bio-based, low-carbon construction including timber and hempcrete systems, directly overlapping with CSK's plant-based material innovation expertise.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
CSK Architects social profiles
Digital presenceCSK Architects financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
CSK Architects leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles5 records
CSK Architects funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
CSK Architects M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about CSK Architects
What does CSK Architects do?
CSK Architects is a private architectural practice providing bespoke design services across residential retrofit, commercial and institutional retrofit, and sustainable new construction. The firm delivers whole life carbon-focused architectural design, interior design, and project management for private clients, estates, educational institutions, and commercial organisations. Revenue is generated through professional service fees for these bespoke architectural commissions.
Is CSK Architects a public or private company?
CSK Architects is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was CSK Architects founded?
CSK Architects was founded in 2016. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is CSK Architects based?
CSK Architects is headquartered in Eton, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does CSK Architects make money?
One revenue line is on record: architectural Design Services.
Who are CSK Architects's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are Allies and Morrison, Foster + Partners and Purcell. Direct peers are Feilden Fowles, Haworth Tompkins, John Pardey Architects, Bere:architects, Cottrell & Vermeulen Architecture, Mikhail Riches and Studio Bark.
Does CSK Architects have an API?
No public API is recorded for CSK Architects.
What industry is CSK Architects in?
CSK Architects's product category is Architectural Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAHAKAA, Architectural Design Services, with a secondary code of BPAHAKAG, Sustainable/Green Building & LEED Consulting. Its NAICS code is 54131 and its SIC code is 8711.