Accelerate Open City

Accelerate is a free design, education and mentoring programme which provides access to a wider pool of young people and aims to increase diversity in the built environment professions.

Accelerate provides young people between the age of 16-18 with a series of skills workshops in exciting locations across London, one-to-one mentoring at an architecture practice and in-depth guidance on university applications. 

The practice of designing and making the built environment is a social act, which takes place within a social as well as physical context and has a huge impact on the way in which people live. The 2023/24 Accelerate programme will demonstrate the importance of focusing on people and community as a means of informing and articulating a thoughtful architectural response.

Students will be challenged to develop a critical social questioning of the built environment, by placing people at the heart of its creation.

Eligibility

Accelerate is for ambitious young people aged 16-18 years old from London state schools and from underrepresented communities. 

How to apply

The course starts in October 2023, finishes in May 2024, and includes a public exhibition showcasing the students’ work in July 2024.

For more information and an application form visit the Open City Accelerate website or email: accelerate@open-city.org.uk