Voices Unmuted: How Architects Are Confronting Hidden Bias in the Workplace

At this year’s Women in Architecture UK event – Unseen, Unspoken, Unfair: Challenging Workplace Discrimination – held at VitrA’s showroom for the London Festival of Architecture, we began with one clear ground rule: psychological safety first.

That set the tone. What followed was a raw, honest conversation about workplace discrimination. The theme was #Voices, and we heard plenty of them – frustrated, hopeful, determined – all pointing to the same truth: we’re overdue for change.

Panel L to R: Emily Jeffers, Christina Leia Riley, Teri Okoro, Amanda Whittington, Anna Ifanti, with WIA host Annie Cosentino

What the Numbers Told Us

Ahead of the event, we ran a poll asking: what’s the hardest part of tackling discrimination at work? The results were revealing:

  • 61% said changing the system is the hardest part

  • 30% said naming the problem

  • Just 9% said seeing it was the main hurdle

The message? Most people in architecture can see bias. They just don’t believe anything will change when they speak up.

That aligns with the Architects Registration Board's own data: Significant proportions have experienced bullying (41%), discrimination (33%), and a third say they would stay silent for fear of career damage . In other words, most people can spot bias; they just don’t trust the system to fix it.

Five voices, one message

Statistics set the stage, but our five speakers grounded the conversation in lived experience:

Teri Okoro, reflecting on her journey as a Black woman architect, reminded the room that regulation matters, but “regulation alone cannot rewrite culture”. The ARB’s forthcoming Code of Conduct will introduce firmer EDI guidance, yet Teri urged smaller practices to start by naming their values and holding each other accountable.

Emily Jeffers, RIBA’s Diversity and Inclusion Specialist, agreed that the Royal Institute of British Architects and ARB codes condemn discrimination, but cautioned against confusing compliance with change. Emily’s takeaway: invest in education, empathy and addressing workplace culture – micro-aggression workshops, allyship training, transparent pay audits—because values learned become habits lived.

Christina Leia Riley silenced the room with her story as a trans woman navigating decades of harassment. She has turned hardship into advocacy, winning awards for LGBTQ+ inclusion across construction—with a stark memoir of decades of transphobic abuse in construction – and how allyship helped her turn trauma into award-winning advocacy for LGBTQ+ rights.

Amanda Whittington explained how Ryder Architecture implemented a zero-tolerance policy, initially through the introduction of a specific EDI group to use as a forum to understand what we wanted to achieve. No stupid questions, no judgment and a few  uncomfortable conversations We have tried to develop listening skills  training and pastoral support to  enable employees within the practice to feel they have a voice if they feel discriminated against. Ryder is explicit what is and is not acceptable and empower their staff by standing by them and supporting them when needed – whether that means putting the phone down or walking off site. “Should you feel unsafe or uncomfortable, Your know your line manager will back you,” says Amanda.

Anna Ifanti shared her perspective as a Greek-born architect. She explained how migration, motherhood and burnout almost cost the profession another talented female leader– until she stepped away, retooled and came back to lead with empathy. Her message to emerging leaders: model the behaviour you want to see, and find mentors who challenge—not mirror—you.

What we learned – and what’s next

1.    Regulation matters, but culture wins. The ARB’s new Code of Conduct will raise the bar, but real progress happens when practices engage in peer-to-peer learning and make behaviour change visible.

2.    Psychological safety is still fragile. If a third of architects still fear backlash for reporting harassment, then policies aren't enough. Trust has to be built and proved.

3.    We Need a Shared Language. Guidance like RIBA's Understanding and Addressing Microaggressions Toolkit give teams the words to challenge bias early, before it escalates.

4.    Learning about fairness, inclusion and respect (FIR) shouldn’t be optional. It’s the groundwork for every "zero tolerance" promise.

5.    Intersectionality Is Not Optional. Discrimination often overlaps. If our solutions don’t account for that, they won’t work.

6.    Wellbeing Is Equity. Unsustainable workloads hurt underrepresented groups most. Fair fees and reasonable hours are part of inclusion, not add-ons.

From talk to traction

The evening closed with practical commitments:

  • Understand microaggressions – start every project with behavioural ground rules.

  • Educate – make use of FIR (Fairness, Inclusion, Respect) and Toolbox Talks and the RIBA Microaggressions Toolkit.

  • Articulate values – even the smallest practice can write down the behaviours it will and will not tolerate.

  • Create multiple reporting routes to report concerns – so juniors are never forced to confront a senior alone.

  • Lead by example – senior staff must separate facts from feelings, accept feedback and mentor beyond their own demographic.

  • Collaborating with grassroots organisations who are already doing the work and platforming voices on an institutional level – example: RIBA’s ongoing work on gender equity with the Fawcett Society to be launched later this yea    

Why It Matters

Architects shape spaces for others. But we also shape the studios and sites we work in. The data is damning, the stories unforgettable, and the tools already exist. What remains is the collective decision to turn common sense into common practice.

Change, the speakers agreed, is rarely comfortable. But with clear values, robust education and visible allyship, the profession can move from acknowledging discrimination to dismantling it – project by project, practice by practice, voice by voice.

Further Reading:

Further respondee insights from our pre event questionnaire.

Sexism in architecture: ‘no offence intended’ is no defence - the pre-event article written by Karen Fugle

Resources

WIA UK extends its thanks to VitrA for their support and generous hospitality in hosting this event.