Our all-female judging panel for Future Cities Forum Awards Summer 2026

Image: Kanal in Brussels - one of the short-listed cultural entries in the cultural category.

Future Cities Forum is releasing the names of its all-female judging panel, who will assess projects across six categories in this summer's awards. The short-list of projects has already been released Future Cities Forum's 2026 Summer Awards entries short list

The judging panel is composed of

Hazel Edwards - Arts Council England

Hazel leads the delivery of the Let’s Create 10-year strategy across the South East area and strategic investment to make real impact for the arts, from Brighton to Cambridge, working with grass-roots organisations to cultural icons. She is committed to making culture and arts education accessible for all with a career spanning the university and the cultural sectors in three regions – the North East, the South West and most recently, the South East. Before joining Arts Council England in 2021, Hazel led research in arts, humanities and education at Durham University and the University of the West of England Bristol, where she was Associate Dean for Research & Innovation.

She originally trained as a history curator at Leicester University and worked in museums and art galleries in the North East for 25 years; she was the first woman to lead Discovery Museum, the large science and industry museum in Newcastle upon Tyne. She has extensive experience of board membership including Director and Deputy Chair of Bristol Ideas. She sat on the Museums Association Board for three years and in 2015 she became a Fellow of the Museums Association in recognition of her contribution to the sector. Her wide experience of universities, local authorities and the arts drives her commitment to developing dynamic regional cultural ecologies.

Alice Barrois - Grimshaw

Alice is a Principal and the Grimshaw Paris Studio leader. She joined Grimshaw in 2014, working in the practice’s London and Sydney studios before relocating to Paris in 2017, and she has over 14 years’ experience delivering projects across sectors including rail, infrastructure, and mixed use. She led the team to win the Rapas bridge in Toulouse and has been leading the studio’s projects with Société du Grand Paris and the development of the Grand Paris Metro and a number of competition entries on projects across France and the Francophone regions.

Grimshaw, together with Lafayette and setec tpi, has recently been chosen to design the masterplan for Paris La Défense’s new ‘Cœur Transport’ hub. This strategic redevelopment project aims to support the transformation of one of the Greater Paris region’s busiest multimodal stations.

Grimshaw Architects, originally known as Nicholas Grimshaw & Partners, was established in London and has since become a leader in high-tech architecture. The firm emphasizes the connection between people and their environment, aiming to create designs that are not only functional but also environmentally responsible. Grimshaw has committed to achieving net-zero carbon buildings by 2025 and aims to deliver socially and environmentally regenerative designs by 2030

Petra Roberts - Hackney Council

Petra Roberts is the Assistant Director for Culture, Heritage, and Libraries at Hackney Council.

Petra leads the Council’s culture, heritage, libraries, venues and film services. She leads a major change programme across Hackney’s Libraries Service, which is the first formal library review for several years that has informed a new Library strategy in 2022.

During the Covid lockdown, Petra provided business support to local arts organisations at risk and is now leading the cultural recovery and placemaking programme with her service teams. She is a Commissioner on the LGA Culture and Local Government Commission and has set up the Mayor of Hackney’s heritage review into the naming of public spaces in response to the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement.

In 2018, Petra initiated an award-winning cohesion programme and a philanthropic legacy project that has seen the installation of the first permanent sculptures to honour the Windrush generation in the UK.

Previously to local government, Petra worked in various roles in the voluntary and community sector, the cultural and creative industries, the National Health Service and as a grant maker at the National Lottery Fund.

Amy Bourne - Scott Brownrigg

Amy has been with Scott Brownrigg since 2017 and is passionate about the design process, with a keen interest in culture, people, and placemaking. As the Healthy Environment Lead and a WELL Accredited Professional, she is dedicated to creating spaces that enhance well-being and support the people who use them.

With widespread experience in designing and delivering commercial office, laboratory, and education projects (with recent projects in Cambridge, Oxford and Southampton), Amy brings a thoughtful and people-centred approach to every space she creates. Her work reflects a deep commitment to fostering environments that inspire, connect, and promote health and productivity.

Scott Brownrigg is a British international architecture and design practice specializing in architecture, master-planning, urbanism, and interior design. It is headquartered in London with nine offices worldwide, including New York, Singapore, Riyadh, and Amsterdam

Yasmin Ali - Redbridge Council

Yasmin is Head of Capital Delivery at Redbridge Council, having recently moved from Tower Hamlets Council where she was the client project leader in charge of the redevelopment of the historic Whitechapel Hospital, the Royal London, into the current Tower Hamlets Town Hall. The project won RIBA's 'London building of the year 2025' and the the Jury said:

"The scheme boldly reinvents the dilapidated and derelict Grade II listed former hospital buildings, satisfying the brief by overlaying it on the existing spaces and adding a substantial new extension. The approach is at once sensitive and brave, creating a modern, civic home for council administration, local services and democracy, including a flexible council chamber and office space for the council’s 2,400 staff."

Rachel Moulton - HKS Architects and Designers

Rachel is the Regional Practice Director, Education in the London office of HKS. She provides direction on projects and thought leadership. Rachel specialises in school design with a particular expertise in SEND (Special Education Needs and Disability) schools. She is also a Part 3 Tutor and Oral Examiner at a London University.

HKS is a global architecture, interior design, planning, and advisory firm known for creating places noted for their beauty and performance. With over 1,400 professionals across 27 locations worldwide, HKS emphasizes an environmental, social, and governance approach to design, aiming for design excellence

Elise Schneider - City of Edinburgh Council

Elise is a Senior Construction Project Manager within the Granton Waterfront Team and has extensive experience in design and construction having led delivery of large-scale housing and heritage projects in Granton and across the city.

Edinburgh City Council has written:

'Edinburgh’s ambitious plan to regenerate Granton Waterfront into a new coastal community has received UK-wide recognition at the Future Cities Forum Winter Awards 2022. Selected as the best development in the country in the master planning, regeneration and mixed use category, the Council's £1.3bn vision with Collective Architecture sets out to boost housing in the area, create a high quality, desirable place to live and transform streets to promote active travel, creating a vibrant, thriving hub on the water’s edge which responds to the climate emergency.

The award recognises the project's fresh approach to creating a vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable coastal quarter in Edinburgh, with judges praising the development’s focus on job creation, net zero ambitions and a heritage programme.

Alexandra Jonca - Buro Happold

Alexandra is an Associate in Buro Happold's Sustainability and Physics team. Her work focuses on developing and delivering circular economy and sustainability strategies on UK building and masterplan projects, where she aims to push the boundaries on topics like regenerative design, future resiliency and systems thinking.

She also specialises in city and portfolio-level climate action frameworks. Alexandra previously worked at UK Green Building Council, where she helped lead the delivery of the Net Zero Whole Life Carbon Routemap for the UK Built Environment and various circular economy and net zero guidance documents. She is based in London. 

Buro Happold is a British international engineering consultancy and advisory firm specializing in integrated design, engineering, and project management for buildings, infrastructure, and the environment.