Darling Associates Architects appoints first female Chair of the Board

Darling Associates Architects has kicked off 2022 with a bang, by announcing the appointment of Julie Pears as its new Chair.

Julie-Pears

Taking over from Richard Houghton, Chairman for the last 10 years, Pears is the company’s first female Chair, and brings a wealth of experience to the role. During her 35 years in the industry, she has focused on private/public sector joint ventures, partnering to secure sustainable town and city centre regeneration schemes which have included transport infrastructure, commercial, mixed tenure residential, leisure, hotels, health, and cultural provision.

Having previously worked on behalf of major investors such as the Crown Estate and the Church Commissioners, and in a client capacity as Director of Development at Capital Shopping Centres / intu and Development Director at Ellandi, Julie will now steer Darling’s impressive studio as it continues to grow.

Commenting on her appointment, Julie said:

“I am pleased to be joining Darling Associates as Chair, having joined as a non-exec Director in 2021. Contributing to Place in terms of positive environmental, social, and economic impact has never been more relevant than it is now which is why I am excited for how the built environment can lead the agenda. Darling is at the forefront of placemaking and I cannot wait to drive the business forward in my new role.”

Chris Darling, Managing Director of Darling, added:

“We are really pleased to have Julie as our new chair. Since her arrival as non-executive director last year she has already show day to day how much her experience and drive contributes to our work and the direction of the practice. It is a really exciting time at Darling and with Julie’s appointment strengthening our team even further we anticipate a strong year ahead.”

Since its inception in 2003, Darling Associates has grown into a multi-award winning, AJ100 leading architects’ firm with the appointment of Julie being just the latest example of its trajectory.

Darling’s success is built around its diverse group of architects, designers and masterplanners from all over the world, each passionate about designing beautiful architecture in which people can live, work and relax.