Wise Words: Ellen McCann
Trainee architect Ellen McCann, from East Boldon, is only 27 but already has substantial successes under her belt, including winning three awards - the NE Chamber of Commerce Apprentice of the Year, a RIBA Yorkshire Student Award for Part 2 (Commendation) and the Bryan Jefferson Prize for Excellence in Architecture.
Her career path had seemed clear to her when she was young - it was to be in the design world. However, work experience in an architectural practice, put her off that particular sector, or so she thought.
She said: “The work I was given didn’t excite me as much as expected, and the man next to me had ‘I hate architecture’ on his mug which was also very off putting! I now work in architecture but can totally understand how it can be tricky to make a profession exciting to someone who is only there for a few days. And now looking back I think any office environment would have seemed pretty daunting to a fifteen year old.”
As a result of that early experience Ellen moved her focus to fashion design and applied to one of the country’s top courses at Kingston University. When she heard she’d been accepted she shouted with delight so loudly it made her Dad nearly crash the car!
“It was a dream come true and very unexpected. However, the reality of the course was very different to what I had hoped for. It was very competitive from the start. London Fashion Week was on and we had to try and blag our way in to one of the shows and take photos inside high end fashion shops.
"One girl got into the Ralph Lauren show as her family member worked for the brand. I didn’t get into any of them and also had the humiliation of getting kicked out of a designer shop, for trying to take a photo. All of which made me think this career is probably not right for me.”
Ellen decided to take her time and rethink her career path. Gateshead College’s PlanBEE apprenticeship had just started and offered a range of opportunities in the construction sector. The variety of work experience and academic studies appealed to her and she also thought the practical skills would be useful to fully understand if the industry was suited to her, prior to committing to another degree
She completed PlanBEE with work experience at architecture practices and a range of other firms including,Sir Robert McAlpine, a consulting engineers and NBS.
She said: “I enjoyed all the placements but contrary to my earlier experience I found architecture the best.”
The road to becoming an architect is long. After a two year HND in Construction and the Built Environment alongside her apprenticeship, Ellen studied at Northumbria University as an under-graduate, followed by a one year work placement at Ryder Architecture. Then there have been two years for a Masters at Sheffield University.
During her Masters course she did a dissertation on the feminist city concept, which aims to support care-givers (men or women) in the environment they live in. The fundamental premise is to ensure people can go about their daily lives in a sustainable, safe, and as easy a way as possible.
Ellen first came across the concept on a visit to Glasgow where Holly Bruce, a Green councillor got a motion passed for it to become the country’s first feminist city.
She said: “What I heard on that trip encouraged me to read more about it in books by people like Leslie Kern, a feminist geographer. She explained how white, able-bodied men were generally responsible for planning decisions. The result has been that places were generally designed following linear routes where everything like housing, work area, shops and leisure facilities were spread out across the city.
“The result is the caregiver, often a woman, has so much travelling to do, as public transport, schools, workplaces etc are all at a big distance to each other.”
Ellen was awarded her £1,000 travel bursary from Sheffield University to see three places at various stages of their path to becoming feminist cities.
Glasgow was on her list because it was one of the first cities to recognise the need for change. The city’s ‘to do’ list is huge and initial ideas include having easily accessible public toilets, good transport safety, drinking water available, parks with plenty of seating and good lighting that is pleasant and not intimidating.
When she travelled to Barcelona there was a different set of parameters such as the weather being very warm, so more people used the parks and outdoor areas. This increases the feeling of safety.
She said: “Barcelona has used its grid planning structure to change how the city works. Traffic was cut from the centre of nine large, square housing blocks. The centre of them was made into a park, surrounded by homes. It made the area people-centred, not traffic centred.
“Some places I visited, such as Placa de’en Baro, have used a ‘bottom up’ approach. For example, children were asked to draw what they’d like to see, and enjoy doing, so the public areas were right for them, rather than something being imposed.”
In Vienna, Ellen found a slightly different approach and more progress, as the city prides itself on being a gender equal place to live. However, she said there is still a good amount of work still to do.
The city has been planning to be more gender inclusive for a lot longer than Glasgow or Barcelona. Differences in place include huge areas where the roads were changed to allow for really wide pavements for pedestrians. There is also a new area where all the streets were named after famous women, in response to the 4,269 streets in Vienna named after men. .
Ellen said: “There were some well-considered U-Bahn station developments. They were designed to feel safe, with a lot of glazing rather than dark corridors. Even lifts were glazed, so people could be seen and feel secure.
“This was a big difference to Glasgow where most stations didn’t have lifts for prams or wheelchair access.
“It can also be little things that make a huge difference as well. In the feminist housing development, Frauen-Werk-Stadt there was a pram store at every apartment block entrance so people didn’t have to carry them upstairs.”
“The perfect city would have well-lit parks, easy walking routes, ramps, glazing along potential dark corridors with shops, workplaces, nurseries and homes all near each other and within walking distance.
Affluence or the lack of it can play a huge role in how feminist a city becomes. Ellen said: “If someone has no money and they are in a park with no public toilets they may not be able to go into a café to use facilities. They then they must stop using it.”
She found the non-fiction book, Invisible Women by Caroline Perez bursting at the seams with facts which supported her interest in creating inclusive environments. Every page had something that shocked her. Two of these stood out. The first was that cars were never tested on women’s bodies only men’s, meaning the safety features were designed specifically around a man’s physique.
Second was a story of a city that reported the snow clearing had gone well and everyone could get to work. It transpired only the roads were predominantly used by men, and most of the women walked to work there, and the pavements were still totally treacherous.
Her advice for other people who may realise they are on the wrong path is it’s never too late to change your mind - even if changing your mind involves 7+ years of studying! Maybe you are on the right path, it's just not leading you to where you had mapped out in your mind. Follow your heart and make decisions based on what makes you happy and excites you, and try not to worry what other people will think (I think I’m trying to tell myself something here!).
The Stand-Up Mam has funny family stories in it. Do you have any to share?
This might be a bit dark! We had an elderly family member over for Christmas lunch one year and just as we were about to eat he suddenly put his head on the table and didn’t move. All of us looked at each other and wondered if he had died and unsure what to do. Then just as quickly he sat back up and began eating his food as if nothing had happened so we just ignored it and did the same!