Best Architecture Practice
Bennetts Associates
Bennetts Associates’ guiding vision is for resource-conscious architecture that is elegant in its simplicity and created with generosity. This vision defines not just the buildings they create but the way in which they operate—as a collaborative, employee-owned firm committed to excellence, integrity, and sustainability, inspiring the spaces they shape for people, communities, and the planet. Known for pioneering sustainable solutions, the firm has led innovation in low-energy buildings, BREEAM-rated workplaces, and regenerative materials. Work in the science sector, including the Tribeca development in London, showcases a commitment to reducing embodied carbon through design, research, and collaboration. Active contributors to the UK NZCBS and a certified B Corp, Bennetts Associates combines environmental leadership with design excellence.BondBryan:Fairhursts
Joining forces with Bond Bryan has empowered Fairhursts to refocus and restructure around their long-standing life sciences specialism—strengthening their capacity to deliver high-performance environments for scientific innovation. With dedicated internal teams facilitating circular thinking and social value, they’re embedding future-ready thinking across every stage of the design process. They’re also deeply invested in nurturing the next generation, putting a strong emphasis on circulating and amplifying their knowledge throughout the practice and industry. This is a new chapter for Fairhursts—one that combines legacy expertise with forward-thinking ambition to shape truly impactful, human-centred spaces for science.Corstorphine & Wright
Corstorphine & Wright has made a significant impact in the life sciences sector through innovative, sustainable design and strategic reuse of existing buildings. Projects like Victoria House in London and the Grafton Centre in Cambridge showcase our ability to blend heritage with cutting-edge functionality, while promoting community engagement and environmental performance. With a collaborative ethos, expertise beyond the “golden triangle,” and contributions to thought leadership, the practice is helping shape the sector’s future. Our rapid growth to 13 UK studios and our delivery of major projects worth over £300m reflects both design excellence and commercial strength.David Miller Architects
Since entering the Life Science sector in 2022, we've applied our collaborative digital design approach to rapidly build expertise and gain a firm foothold in this fast-evolving sector, opening up new opportunities for growth in the practice. Our MAYDE project has created a new typology in an urban setting, with a functional and adaptable solution that opens itself up and integrates into its neighbourhood, helping to make it a sustainable model for future development. DMA’s agile mindset and rigorous systems help us to shape places that are flexible, inclusive, and ready to respond to what’s coming next in Life Science.HLM Architects
HLM Architects is redefining the future of education and research environments through thoughtful, people-centred design. With a deep commitment to sustainability, innovation, and collaboration, we create spaces that inspire learning, support wellbeing, and drive social value. From the award-winning London Institute for Healthcare Engineering to The Wave at the University of Sheffield, our work blends cutting-edge technology with sector-leading research to deliver lasting impact. As pioneers in digital design and post-occupancy evaluation, we empower institutions to make informed, future-ready decisions—setting a new standard for excellence in educational architecture across the UK and beyond.Kohn Pedersen Fox
KPF designs impactful life science, innovation, and academic projects in the UK and internationally that elevate the experience of place and create value for a diverse set of stakeholders. Driven by the belief that “Scientists are people too” we have taken traditionally out-of-town typologies (largely designed around performance, not aesthetics) and embedded them into the fabric of the city to foster inclusive and socially meaningful development that supports the cross-discipline interaction required for innovation.NBBJ
NBBJ is designing millions of square feet of lab/office space around the world, helping accelerate scientific research. With a focus on the human experience and sustainable design, projects include the Life and Mind Building at the University of Oxford – the largest lab in Europe built to Passivhaus principles. Named by CNN as one of the projects set to shape the world in 2025, the Life and Mind Building will provide world class innovative research and teaching facilities for the Departments of Biology and Experimental Psychology enabling them to study the full breadth of life on earth.Shepheard Epstein Hunter
Shepheard Epstein Hunter is a London-based architecture practice with a growing portfolio in the life sciences sector. We blend design excellence with pragmatic, people-focused thinking, delivering flexible, sustainable lab environments within complex contexts — including the retrofit of a listed building at the University of East Anglia and the world-class Space Park Leicester. Known for our collaborative ethos and commitment to going above and beyond, we support clients through every stage of design and delivery. With technical rigour, budget-conscious solutions, and a fabric-first sustainability approach, we’re proud to shape spaces where scientific discovery and innovation thrive.Sheppard Robson
Our recent and ongoing projects illustrate the practice’s instinct to innovate, particularly in the convergence of labs and offices. Our collaborations with our interior design group, ID:SR, result in spaces that are people-centred and carefully tuned to occupiers’ requirements – both now and into the future. Our redoubling of efforts around sustainability, emphasised through some strategic new hires, highlights Sheppard Robson’s firm belief in responsible design.