How Places Work

An inspirational programme of visits to buildings and public spaces, to help students understand what makes places work.

Inspirational visits to buildings and public spaces can help young people to understand what makes places work.

Why do some places succeed and others fail? We believe that the best way to understand architecture and public space in to experience them.

Photography can capture some of the excitement of a building, but it can never fully convey the complexity of space, the quality of light and how it changes, the feeling and even the smell of building materials.

We created How Places Work as a programme of visits to buildings and public spaces for young people. Thousands of young people were introduced to buildings and spaces by men and women with a deep knowledge of those places, revealing why they were designed that way and what makes them special.

How Places Work teacher’s guide

How Places Work teacher’s guide offers advice and support for making the most of a visit. It includes ideas for how the experience can stimulate exciting investigations into young people’s own spaces and places.

The teaching materials are based on key stage 3 but are easily adaptable for older or younger pupils in a wide range of curriculum areas. If you are a head or teacher download the guide and start to think about where you could visit and explore. Go on – inspire your students!