Open City is a London charity that makes architecture and the built environment more open, running the Open House Festival and learning programmes for young people.
Open City is a London charity whose aim is to make the built environment "more open, accessible, and equitable". It helps communities learn about, connect with and shape the places where they live. Its biggest event is the Open House Festival, held every September, which opens up buildings and landscapes in London that are normally closed to the public and gives about 250,000 Londoners a year access to them. Open City also runs events, tours, podcasts, films, courses and publications, and has a shop.
The charity says it has worked for over three decades, though the page we read does not give a founding year. Its mission statement is the clearest guide to its values, and the page does not list separate values. A strong theme is access. Its Accelerate programme is an award-winning mentoring scheme for young people who are traditionally excluded from architecture, and its education work includes city-making workshops at primary and special educational needs schools. It says its learning programmes reach over 8,000 young people across 50 London schools each year.
Open City is based in London, and its education pathways also run in Birmingham. Its Open House model has spread overseas, with a network of Open House Festivals in cities around the world. The page gives the number as over 60 in one place and 50 cities in another, so we do not state a figure. London's heritage and architecture are the main subject of its London Architecture guidebook, published by Penguin.
The page names several staff: Manijeh Verghese is chief executive, Celia Mead is London Open House Festival Director, Zoe Dennington is Education Director and Merlin Fulcher is Editorial Director, and Jim Minton chairs the trustees. Roles at a charity like this include festival organisers, education and outreach staff, editors and producers, fundraisers and volunteer coordinators. The festival also relies on volunteers, and the page links to volunteer information though it gives no number. Staff culture is not described on the page we read.
For a student, Open House weekend is a very easy way to look inside buildings you would never normally see and decide whether architecture and the built environment might be for you. Open City's education work also shows that there are routes in for people who might not know an architect. Check its website for current events, volunteering and vacancies, none of which we reviewed in detail.
Website: open-city.org.uk
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