Dr Tara Hipwood

Assistant Professor

School: Architecture and Built Environment

I am a Chartered Architect and a Senior Lecturer in Sustainable and Environmental Design in the Department of Architecture at Northumbria University

Prior to commencing my Ph.D in Low Carbon Housing Retrofit at Cardiff University in 2014, I was engaged in architectural education. Beginning at the University of Bath and the National Institute of Applied Sciences (INSA) in Strasbourg, France, this was followed by postgraduate studies, specialising in Sustainable Building: Performance and Design and RIBA Professional Practice examinations, both at Oxford Brookes University. My studies were combined with periods in architectural practice both in the UK and abroad, working on a variety of projects across the commercial, public, healthcare and social housing sectors.

I currently lead the final year of the BA Architecture programme and tutor across both the Interior Architecture and postgraduate Architecture programmes on various aspects of sustainable, environmental and regenerative design.

Campus Address

C101, Ellison Building
Northumbria University,
Newcastle upon Tyne,
NE1 8ST,

Email Tara

Research Themes and Scholarly Interests

My research interests focus around the intersections between occupant wellbeing, the built environment, and the natural environment – and perhaps most importantly where the distinction between these elements breaks down. My Ph.D. studies, explored a nexus-of-practice perspective towards teleological influences on owner-occupiers’ home improvements and the implications this has for encouraging low carbon retrofit. I am currently working on collaborative research projects with regional government and social housing providers, examining the decarbonisation of social housing portfolios across North-East England.

Key Publications

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Enabling Owner-Occupiers to Retrofit: A Practice-Based Study of Architects’ Educative Role, Ghasemi, H., Hipwood, T., Holgate, P. 26 Jan 2024, AMPS Proceedings Series 33.1, Architecture Media Politics Society
Historical narratives of public health in the built environment, Hipwood, T., Lee, S. 4 Apr 2023, In: Architecture_MPS
Memory and Reinvention in the Post-industrial Periphery: Section of the Communities & Change Exhibition, Hipwood, T., Martinez Capdevila, P. 3 Jul 2023
Repurposing as Learning: Understanding the Role of Architects in Enabling Owner-Occupiers to Retrofit, Ghasemi, H., Hipwood, T., Holgate, P. 2023, Proceedings of the International Conference, London, Counterarchitecture
‘Unprecedented times’: historical narratives of public health in the built environment, Hipwood, T., Lee, S. 4 Apr 2023, In: Architecture_MPS
Adapting owner-occupied dwellings in the UK: lessons for the future, Hipwood, T. 11 May 2022, In: Buildings and Cities
Sustainable Homes: [Post] Pandemic Reflections: Women in Architecture Digital Nexus 2022 Exhibition, Hipwood, T. 29 Aug 2022
Decarbonising Social Housing in North England, Mokhtar Azizi, Z., Davidson, G., Hipwood, T., Lilley, S., Watson, R. Oct 2021
Panel keynote: Connectivity in Design, A Joined-up Approach to Health and Wellbeing: Human-Centred Architecture and Designing for Inclusion, Hipwood, T., Torun, A., McIntyre, L., Sedgewick, F. 5 Nov 2021, Architecture Media Politics and Society: Global Health Conference – Environments by Design: Health, Wellbeing, and Place
Understanding low-carbon housing retrofit within a wider nexus of practices, Hipwood, T. May 2021, In: Journal of Architecture

Current and Recent Projects

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Green growth skills, Watson, R. (Principal Investigator), Hipwood, T. (Co Investigator), North of Tyne Combined Authority, 01/04/23 - 31/03/26, £463,160.00

Professional Activity

Please visit the Pure Research Information Portal for further information
Other: NECA WarmHomes Strategy Advisory Group 2026
Hosting an academic visitor: Victoria Allen 2025
Participating in a conference, workshop, ...: World Health Organisations (WHO) Fourth hearing on European Programme of Work 2 (EPW2) 2025
Visiting an external academic institution: Cove Park 2024
Invited talk: Climate Action Seminar: Retrofitting 2024
Other: NINE DTP Environmental Planning Pathway Lead - Northumbria University 2024
Publication Peer-review: Archnet-IJAR (Journal) 2024
Publication Peer-review: RIBA Publishing (Publisher) 2024
Other: RIBA Regional Awards - Sustainability Judge 2024
Visiting an external academic institution: House of Commons 2023

PGR Supervision

Habib Ghasemi Architects as Educators: Reconceptualising the Role of Design Professionals in Owner-Occupier Low Carbon Retrofit Start Date: 18/01/2021 End Date: 27/06/2025

Qualifications