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Shaping Housing for New South Wales’ Future

It’s no secret the current cost-of-living and housing crisis is providing immeasurable stress for a significant majority of Australian residents. People are completely excluded from the market and struggling to find suitable, liveable homes.

Carter Williamson has always been passionate about housing availability and accessibility, believing strongly that architecture should be built with design excellence, longevity and inclusivity intertwined.

For these reasons, we are proud to announce that Carter Williamson has been commissioned by the Government Architect Abbie Galvin to design a suite of low-rise housing for the New South Wales’ Housing Pattern Book.

Compiled with work from Anthony Gill Architects, SAHA, Sam Crawford Architects, Sibling Architecture and Studio Johnston, the Low-Rise Pattern Book will provide designs to streamline developments and aid in swifter approvals. All users of the Pattern Book will benefit from accelerated planning approval processes when building one of the Pattern Book designs.

Truss House, Carter Williamson Architects
‘The NSW Pattern Book will provide families, builders and developers with a collection of pre-approved, architecturally designed and cost-effective patterns to choose from. Those that use the designs will have access to a fast-tracked planning pathway’ [1]

A Pattern Book is a collection of designs tailored to a city, area or precinct. A cost-effective, durable and creative response to tactfully develop higher density areas during housing crises. Carter Williamson has over twenty years’ experience designing homes across a wide variety of sites, councils, and planning pathways.

As Australia’s population continues to evolve, housing needs to reflect this. Single person households are the fastest growing typology in the country, currently making up 25% of all homes in Australia, residential infrastructure needs to represent such demographics.

Tree Island, Carter Williamson Architects
‘We have less housing diversity today than we did 100 years ago; the pattern book, along with our fast-track (development application) process, will go a long way to reintroduce that diversity into our streets’ [2]

Carter Williamson has a long history of developing award-winning projects that prioritise restoration, working with rather than against site conditions and heritage constraints. We are passionate about alterations and additions to existing homes that encourage sustainable, multi-generational living.

Some bespoke responses to site that rest at the core of our practice include expanding green spaces, introducing internal courtyards and enhancing abundant natural light. Most importantly, our contribution to the Low-Rise Pattern Book will continue our endeavour to design homes with character.

We are excited to contribute to the inspired heterogeneous street planning and urban futures planned for New South Wales.

Concrete Blonde, Carter Williamson Architects
‘More diverse housing types, including townhouses, duplexes and mid-rise apartments, to meet the changing needs of households' [3]

Providing well located, well designed, and accessible housing infrastructure resonates deeply with Carter Williamsons’ ethos and practice. From 2015-2019 three of our team spearheaded the ‘Save Our Sirius’ campaign, advocating to secure heritage protection for the iconic Sirius Building designed by Tao Gofers.

The campaign was chaired by our Founding Principal Shaun Carter, with support from Co-Principal Ben Peake and Graduate Amiera Piscopo. ‘Save our Sirius’ advocated strongly against the displacement of social housing residents from their homes in The Rocks, and for the provision of new and affordable housing in Sydney.

Save our Sirius Protest, 2016
‘We want new homes to be built faster, but the Pattern Book will mean those homes are good quality, sustainable and cost-effective’ [4]

Having the opportunity to design flexibly and prospectively for New South Wales’ built environment and Greater Sydney’s urban future is a privilege that we are thrilled to continue pursuing.

To stay in the loop with our contributions to the New South Wales Low-Rise Housing Pattern Book and other projects, sign up to our quarterly newsletter and follow us on Instagram.

Tree Island, Carter Williamson Architects

[1] Government Architect's Office

[2] Paul Scully, NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces

[3] Government Architect's Office

[4] Paul Scully, NSW Minister for Planning and Public Spaces

Information

Post Date 21 February 2025
Author Isabella Feek
Tags Projects