Don't Move, Improve! 2022 shortlist is revealed
The Don't Move, Improve! 2022 shortlist has been announced, celebrating London conversions, extensions and redesigns of all shapes and sizes

Are you looking for an architect to commission for your house extension? Is an apartment interior design refresh on the cards? Or would you simply be looking for inspiration on how to turn a cramped period house into a bright and airy minimalist architecture-inspired family home? Look no further than the Don't Move, Improve! 2022 shortlist, which has just been revealed to the world today. The popular London-wide architecture competition, organised by New London Architecture (NLA, the capital's dedicated centre focusing on the built environment), is now on its 13th year of celebrating smart, strategic moves that prove bigger is not always better – and that with flair, the right architect and some bold design moves, any domestic space can be transformed to fit one’s needs.
This year’s shortlist features 15 renovation projects, spanning the breadth of the UK capital. There are rear extensions and upwards expansions; bright colours and neutral, subdued interiors; and plenty of modern, 21st-century vibes in historical brick shells, involving many of the building typologies that are common across London.
A Tuscan Veranda by Turner Architects.
The Don’t Move, Improve! 2022 shortlist
- Artist Studio Conversion by Vatraa
- A Tuscan Veranda by Turner Architects
- Bay Window House by Gundry + Ducker
- Church Road by AHMM with Ruff Architects
- Coffer House by Proctor & Shaw
- Concrete Plinth House by DGN Studio
- Curve Appeal by Nimtim Architects
- Forest House by AOC
- Little Brownings by Archmongers
- Non Boxy Lofty by Fraher & Findlay
- Pergola House by Benjamin Wilkes
- Pink House by Oliver Leech
- Shoji Apartment by Proctor & Shaw
- Slide and Slot House by Ashton Porter Architects
- Transitions by Red Squirrel Architects
A judging panel comprising NLA director Amy Chadwick Till, alongside architect Phil Coffey, journalist Anna White, engineer Sebastian Wood and property expert Kunle Barker put together this varied and rich list of nominees out of a wealth of submissions earlier in the year. The winner will be selected from this list, and will be announced in May 2022.
‘This year’s submissions delighted our jury with innovative approaches to structure, layout, materials and colour,’ says Chadwick Till. ‘We were looking for creativity, originality, liveability, and cost-effectiveness, as well as consideration of environmental impact and local context. Don’t Move, Improve! aims to encourage great domestic-scale design across the city, so we are really pleased to have another shortlist that showcases a wide range of budgets, building styles, locations and home-owner needs.’
Artist Studio Conversion by Vatraa.
Bay Window House by Gundry Ducker.
Curve Appeal by Nimtim Architects.
Forest House by AOC.
Pergola House by Benjamin Wilkes.
Pink House by Oliver Leech.
Shoji Apartment by Proctor and Shaw.
Slide and Slot House by Ashton Porter Architects.
Transitions by Red Squirrel Architects.
Church Road by AHMM with Ruff Architects.
Church Road by AHMM with Ruff Architects.
Concrete Plinth House by DGN Studio.
Little Brownings by Archmongers
Non Boxy Lofty by Fraher & Findlay
INFORMATION
Receive our daily digest of inspiration, escapism and design stories from around the world direct to your inbox.
Ellie Stathaki is the Architecture & Environment Director at Wallpaper*. She trained as an architect at the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki in Greece and studied architectural history at the Bartlett in London. Now an established journalist, she has been a member of the Wallpaper* team since 2006, visiting buildings across the globe and interviewing leading architects such as Tadao Ando and Rem Koolhaas. Ellie has also taken part in judging panels, moderated events, curated shows and contributed in books, such as The Contemporary House (Thames & Hudson, 2018), Glenn Sestig Architecture Diary (2020) and House London (2022).
-
Beloved British screenwriter Dennis Potter inspires an exhibition with a difference at Studio Voltaire
Hilary Lloyd's multi-faceted exhibition at Studio Voltaire considers Dennis Potter's life and work, from much-loved TV classics to power inequalities
-
Insert here: London Design Festival gets intimate with insertable design
At London Design Festival, Heirloom Studio showcases 36 objects – some life-saving, some pleasure-giving, all made to go inside the body
-
Postcard from Helsinki Design Week 2025
Helsinki Design Week turns 20 this year. Celebrating two decades of design, core themes of this year revolve around happiness and optimism: here are design critic Hugo Macdonald's ten highlights
-
The new 2025 London Open House Festival tours to book
2025 London Open House launches this weekend, running 13-21 September; here, we celebrate the newcomers in the residential realm, flagging the exciting additions to the festival's growing home tour programme
-
The wait is over – the RIBA Stirling Prize 2025 shortlist is here
The restored home of Big Ben, creative housing for different needs, and a centre for medical innovation – the RIBA Stirling Prize 2025 shortlist has just been announced, and its six entries are as diverse as they can be
-
Slides, clouds and a box of presents: it’s the Dulwich Picture Gallery’s quirky new pavilion
At the Dulwich Picture Gallery in south London, ArtPlay Pavilion by Carmody Groarke and a rich Sculpture Garden open, fusing culture and fun for young audiences
-
Bay House brings restrained modern forms and low-energy design to the Devon coast
A house with heart, McLean Quinlan’s Bay House is a sizeable seaside property that works with the landscape to mitigate impact and maximise views of the sea
-
A whopping 92% of this slick London office fit-out came from reused materials
Could PLP Architecture's new workspace provide a new model for circularity?
-
Meet the landscape studio reviving the eco-brutalist Barbican Conservatory
London-based Harris Bugg Studio is working on refreshing the Barbican Conservatory as part of the brutalist icon's ongoing renewal; we meet the landscape designers to find out more
-
A refreshed Victorian home in London is soft, elegant and primed for hosting
Sobremesa house by architects Studio McW shows off its renovation and extension, designed for entertaining
-
15 years of Assemble, the community-driven British architecture collective
Rich in information and visuals, 'Assemble: Building Collective' is a new book celebrating the Turner Prize-winning architecture collective, its community-driven hits and its challenges