How to Write a Brief for Your Architect

A brief does not need to be a long or formal document — but it should cover the following elements:

**1. What you want to achieve: the functional objectives**:

Describe what you want the project to achieve in practical, functional terms — not what it should look like. For example:

*Weak brief*: 'We want a kitchen extension with bifold doors and a roof lantern.'

*Strong brief*: 'We want to create an open-plan kitchen-dining-living area that feels connected to the garden. We currently have a cramped dark kitchen with no dining space. The goal is to create a room where the whole family (2 adults and 3 children aged 8–14) can cook, eat, and socialise together. We want to be able to open up fully to the garden in summer and have a generous table for 8 people for dinner parties. Natural light is our priority — the current rear of the house is north-facing and very dark.'

The second brief tells the architect: the family composition (affecting size requirements), the problem to be solved (dark, cramped, disconnected from garden), the functional priorities (cooking + dining + family space, garden connection, natural light), and the entertaining use case (table for 8).

• **2. Room by room or space by space requirements**:
• List each space you need and what it needs to contain or accommodate. Example for a loft conversion brief:
• •Master bedroom: king-size bed + bedside tables + built-in wardrobe (at least 2m run); currently the master is very noisy from the road; quiet is a priority
• •En-suite bathroom: double shower, basin, WC, heated towel rail; no bath required but would like a bath if space allows
• •Staircase: must be conventional straight or dogleg stair; our elderly parent visits and cannot use a spiral

• **3. What you specifically do NOT want**:
• Negative requirements are often as useful as positive ones. Common examples:
• •'We do not want a flat roof — we prefer the appearance of a pitched roof extension'
• •'We do not want to lose the third bedroom on the first floor — it must remain a bedroom'
• •'We do not want to move the kitchen — the proposed extension is purely dining and family room'
• •'We do not want underfloor heating — we are on a budget and prefer radiators'

**4. Budget**: Share your budget with the architect. Many clients are reluctant to do this — worried that the architect will 'spend up to the budget' regardless of what is needed. In practice, an architect who knows your budget can design to it; one who doesn't will design what they think is right and then be surprised when the quotes come in over budget, requiring redesign. Share a realistic figure and whether it includes or excludes professional fees, VAT, and furnishings.

• **5. Planning context and constraints**:
• •Have you spoken to the planning authority yet? Is the property in a Conservation Area?
• •Are there any planning conditions from a previous application?
• •Are there party wall considerations?
• •Are there any neighbour relationship issues that might affect the design approach?

• **6. Timescale and programme priorities**:
• •When do you want to move in (or return home, if you plan to move out during works)?
• •Are there specific programme constraints — a wedding, a child starting school, a lease renewal — that create a hard deadline?
• •Are you flexible on programme in exchange for lower cost, or is programme a priority?

• **7. Style and aesthetic preferences**:
• Style preferences are useful context, but should come after the functional requirements. Helpful framing:
• •Show 3–5 images of projects you like (from Houzz, Pinterest, or magazines) and explain what you like about each image — is it the materials? The sense of space? The proportion of glazing? The connection to the garden? This helps the architect understand what the aesthetic preference is pointing at functionally.
• •Be explicit about what you don't like — 'not very contemporary, we want it to feel warm and traditional' is as useful as describing what you do like.

Almost every brief contains latent conflicts — the client wants the extension to be as large as possible, as light as possible, and as cheap as possible. These objectives do not all move in the same direction. A good brief acknowledges these tensions and expresses your priorities explicitly.

**The three-way tension in extension design**:

*Size vs. Budget*: More floor area costs more money. If budget is tight, the brief should explicitly say 'we prioritise quality and finish within the budget over square footage — we would rather have a smaller, better-finished extension than a larger, compromise-finish one.'

*Openness vs. Thermal performance*: Large glazing areas (bifold doors, roof lanterns) create connection to the outside and natural light but increase heat loss. In a north-facing extension, a full-width glazed rear wall may feel cold and uncomfortable in winter. The brief should flag if you are particularly sensitive to the thermal environment.

*Speed vs. Design quality*: A faster planning and design process means less time to develop and refine the design. If you have a hard programme constraint, say so — the architect can adapt their process. If you have flexibility, say that too — good design sometimes benefits from time to develop.

• **Explicit priority statements are valuable**:
• •'Our top priority is natural light — we would sacrifice floor area for better natural light'
• •'Our top priority is programme — we have a hard deadline of [month/year] for occupation'
• •'Our top priority is budget discipline — we want the architect to challenge any element that costs more than necessary'

**The client who tries to resolve all tensions in the brief**: Some clients write briefs that attempt to maximise every dimension simultaneously — maximum space, maximum light, maximum connection to the garden, minimum cost, minimum programme, minimum disruption. An architect who takes such a brief at face value will either overpromise (and deliver a design that doesn't match the budget) or underdeliver (by choosing which objectives to prioritise without being told). Better to be explicit about which objectives take precedence when they conflict.

• The initial brief is the starting point, not the final word. It is normal and expected that the brief evolves as:
• •You see the architect's initial design response — which may prompt you to reconsider some requirements
• •You receive early cost indications — which may require scope reduction or re-prioritisation
• •The planning application process identifies constraints — which may require design changes

• **How to manage brief changes**:
• •Record changes to the brief in writing — if you decide mid-design that you now want an en-suite in the extension (which was not in the original brief), tell the architect explicitly in writing and understand the implication for programme, cost, and planning
• •Distinguish between 'refinement' (clarifying what was always intended) and 'scope change' (adding something new or different to what was agreed)
• •Be aware that late brief changes — after design has progressed significantly — are expensive in architect's time and may require significant rework

**The brief and the estimate**: A well-defined brief allows the contractor or estimator to price accurately. When the brief is vague, contractors make assumptions — and different contractors make different assumptions, producing quotes that are incomparable even though they appear to be quoting the same project.

**The brief and the design-and-build approach**: In a design-and-build model, the brief goes directly to the design-and-build contractor (or their in-house architect or designer) rather than to an independent architect. The brief performs exactly the same function — defining what you want to achieve so the design team can develop a scheme that responds to your needs, not to generic assumptions. The clearer the brief, the better the design-and-build response will be.