Why write an article
Designing Buildings is a wiki site that was created in 2012 to put all construction industry knowledge in one place and make it available for free. Anyone can create articles about subjects they know and anyone can find articles about subjects they don’t.
Designing Buildings Wiki is now the UK's most popular construction industry website.
Why should you write an article?
As well as being good for the industry, writing an article is a great way of securing profile in your subject area. Just add your user signature at the bottom of articles you write, and your details will automatically appear at the top, linked to your website - like our details do at the top of this article.
If an article already exists, and you significantly develop it, you can still add your signature, even though you didn't create it. See user signature for more information.
Designing Buildings isn’t just a collection of isolated articles, it is an integrated knowledge base. Every phrase in every article that matches the title of another article automatically links to it. So if you write an article about ‘planning permission’ every other article that mentions planning permission will link to it. So not only will your article be found by people that are looking for it, but also by people that are reading something else and come across it.
Writing an article needn’t take much effort. You’ve already written lots of documents that would make great articles - definitions and explanations for bid documents and planning applications, research for clients, conference papers and lectures, dissertations and theses. Don’t leave them to gather dust on your hard drive - put them to work.
To start your article, just click the orange 'Create an article' button below.
Find out more about how to create an article here or see more detailed guidance on our help page.
Or why not just have a practice by editing our test article.
This is our user signature --Designing Buildings
It tells our system to show our user profile at the top of this article.
Featured articles and news
We're expanding our collaborative mission by launching DB Intelligence, an exclusive market research advisory panel. Built environment professionals can now get paid to share their expertise on industry trends, products and services.
Panel members receive direct financial incentives for participating in research projects like short surveys, 1-2-1 interviews and focus groups. Register today to shape the future of the construction sector.
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A brief exoplanation from a building compliance expert, with further links.
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Guidance for dealing with element of building fabric control that have increasing importance.
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UK Standard Skills Classification (SSC)
A shared framework for describing skills needs.
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The latest of eight Skills England apprenticeship units
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Building Control Independent Panel final report
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Building Safety recap April, 2026
A short and longer run-through of the month, with links to further information and sources.
CIAT May 2026 briefing.
From medieval scribes to modern word art.
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Cyber Security in the Built Environment
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Managing competence in the built environment
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The UK's campaign to reduce noise pollution: Mythbusting, articles and topic guides.