Rab Bennetts

Rab Bennetts OBE co-founded Bennetts Associates in 1987 with his partner Denise Bennetts and established its reputation for architecture and professionalism at the highest level.

Rab Bennetts co-founded Bennetts Associates in 1987 with his partner Denise Bennetts and established its reputation for architecture and professionalism at the highest level. To date, the practice has accrued almost 200 awards, including shortlisting for the RIBA Stirling Prize three times and UK Architect of the Year on five occasions. Since the early 1990s, Rab has pioneered the link between sustainable design and high-quality architecture, and was one of the five individuals who founded the UK Green Building Council. Having led the design of numerous projects he stepped down from Bennetts Associates’ management board in 2019, but continues to be active in many aspects of the practice’s work.

Outside Bennetts Associates, Rab has been involved with a wide range of activities and bodies, such as the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland and the Royal High School Preservation Trust in Edinburgh. In 2024 he stepped down as chair of Sadler’s Wells Foundation in London after 18 years on the board. Rab was elected as an Academician of the Royal Scottish Academy in 2020 and was awarded the OBE for services to architecture in 2003.