Frances Cobley

Frances Cobley is an experienced and design-led architect based in our Bristol office, specialising in people-centred, sustainable design and placemaking. She is driven by a commitment to delivering functional, meaningful and low-carbon environments that balance performance with strong aesthetic quality.

My greatest drive is to achieve the very best in my projects. From the smallest detail to the bigger overarching philosophy, I strive to create spaces that exceed expectations.

Frances joined us over 11 years ago and has since seen her career grow from strength to strength. She brings extensive cross-sector experience across projects of varying scale and complexity. Her portfolio spans mixed use developments, commercial workplaces and education projects, with involvement across all stages of project delivery. She has a strong track record in stakeholder engagement, design coordination and leading projects through to successful completion.

She has specialised experience in designing contemporary solutions for agile and efficient learning spaces, aptly supported by her skills in space planning and brief development. She takes great pride in taking a client’s brief and seeing it through to delivery, consistently achieving and often exceeding their aims and expectations.

Her work is underpinned by a master’s degree in sustainable design and a strong commitment to environmental performance and low-carbon design principles, including consideration of passive design strategies and whole-life carbon. She is an active member of AHR’s sustainability team, contributing to the practice’s wider net zero and sustainability agenda.

She is a collaborative and confident member of Bristol’s team. Her ability to build relationships with people extends to her colleagues too, as she actively supports and encourages her team members; strengthened by her roles as a Mental Health First Aider and Wellbeing Champion in the office.