We work exclusively with professionals who create the built environment, helping them develop skills and competencies that are not addressed in their formal training at schools of architecture, design and engineering. In doing this, we help individuals and teams realise their full potential.
On this page, you can explore our in-house training, upcoming public courses and increasingly popular 1:1 coaching services.
Public courses
This November, we're offering our two-day Architects as Project Leaders course as a public programme.
Usually delivered in-house to architectural practices, Colander's most popular face-to-face course, led by Ed Rhodes, will be open to individuals and smaller groups for the first time, allowing them to take part without commissioning an in-house course.
The course will run from 9.30 to 17.00 on:
- Day one: Wednesday 4 November 2026
- Day two: Wednesday 25 November 2026
Both days will be held at:
De Morgan House
57–58 Russell Square
London WC1B 4HS
Delegate numbers are limited to 12, in order to maintain the quality and interactive nature of the training.
Early booking offer: Book by 14 October 2026 to receive 10% off the course fee.
For course fees, further information or to book your place, please contact: training@colander.co.uk
In-house training
Our in-house training is well respected and valued by architects, engineers and designers, as it addresses the specific issues of running creative businesses and influencing project design, from inception through to delivery on site.
We are known for the interactive and immersive quality of our training, whether it is delivered in-person or online. We are therefore always keen to tailor our expertise to suit individual training needs, so feel free to contact us to ask for bespoke sessions.
We have listed our standard courses for both in-person and online delivery below, although we are pleased to offer some courses in both formats. Please refer to the individual course for details.
Do contact us if you would like to discuss your training needs: training@colander.co.uk
In-person sessions
Our in-person courses tend to be full-day sessions, working with small groups of between eight and twelve delegates. This ensures active participation and allows our trainers to give attention to the needs of each individual. We combine teaching with discussions to ensure that the courses address issues that are relevant to the delegates' day-jobs, and use break-out groups, role play and other activities as appropriate, to enhance the learning experience.
Business development
Team development
Delivering projects
Online sessions
To counter screen-fatigue, our highly focused online courses are 90 minutes long. Again, we like to work with small groups of between eight and twelve delegates to ensure active participation, allowing our trainers to give attention to the needs of each individual.
We often find that our clients select a bundle of online sessions, spaced a week or 10-days apart. When this happens, we ensure that the sessions flow one to the other, giving delegates homework between sessions to link the topics, as well as 'lessons learnt' reviews at the start of each subsequent session. This approach enables cohorts of delegates to be trained on related topics in short, sharp sessions that do not intrude too heavily on the working day. For clients selecting more than one session, we like to suggest a 15-minute summary VIVA with each delegate, after the final session, to help embed their learning.
Communications
Team development
Personal development
Coaching
Our coaching focuses on communication, management and leadership skills as well as getting the best from creative people. We work with Partners, Directors and senior staff, either individually or in small groups.
We have a number of different Associates who offer coaching in-person or online. Some of the themes we cover include:
- Influencing with confidence and communicating with gravitas whether working face to face or remotely, by phone or video conferencing.
- The ups and downs of leading an architectural business.
- Inter-personal skills, behaviours and relationships, particularly with work colleagues and clients.
- Thoughts, opinions and perspectives, particularly those that limit people’s ability to achieve either personal or professional goals.
Our experience of delivering online training has shown that follow up sessions with the trainer - either individually or in pairs, face-to-face or online - have been incredibly useful, helping delegates to embed the learning from the group sessions and relate it to their real life experiences of leading teams.
If appropriate we would be delighted to discuss this with our training clients.
To find out more about coaching, please contact: info@colander.co.uk