The first half of 2026 has been an exciting and rewarding period for OCA Studio. Alongside national recognition for our North Sutherland Health & Social Care Hub, we have continued to progress a diverse range of projects, from community-led conservation initiatives and places of worship to residential commissions within some of Scotland's most sensitive historic settings. Whether conserving cherished buildings, creating spaces for community life or adapting homes our work continues to be guided by a commitment to people, place and thoughtful, sustainable design.
Scottish Design Awards
We are delighted that North Sutherland Health & Social Care Hub has been recognised at the Scottish Design Awards 2026, receiving the Gold Award for Best Future Building. Designed in collaboration with NHS Highland and the wider consultant team, the project demonstrates how healthcare architecture can strengthen communities by creating welcoming, sustainable and adaptable spaces that support integrated health and social care. We are incredibly proud to see the project recognised in this way and would like to thank our collaborators, clients WildLand Ltd for NHS Highland and the wider design team for helping bring the vision forward. We look forward to progressing the project through detailed technical design, with construction anticipated to commence in 2027.
Scottish Design Awards 2026 – OCA Studio celebrating the Gold Award for Best Future Building for the North Sutherland Health & Social Care Hub alongside project collaborators Wes Bathgate (Thomson Gray), Liane Bauer (UPi), and Duncan Mowat (Narro Associates).
Publications & Events
We are pleased to share that Oliver Chapman: A Life in Architecture by Professor Richard Weston is now available, celebrating Oliver's life, work and enduring contribution to Scottish architecture. It has been a privilege to work with Richard on this publication, and we were honoured to contribute the closing chapter, "OCA Going Forward", written by OCA Director Martin Lambie, reflecting on the future direction of the practice while continuing the values and approach established by Oliver. The book is available in the RIAS Bookshop online and in store, copies can also be purchased directly from Oliver's family via the link below:
Oliver Chapman: A Life in Architecture by Professor Richard Weston
Earlier this year, OCA Studio was invited to exhibit in the Generation exhibition at the Royal Scottish Academy, alongside 13 other practices connected through a shared architectural lineage from Richard Murphy Architects. The three-month exhibition concluded in March with a well attended and thought-provoking panel discussion, "Lineage", led by Professor Robin Webster.
Photographs from 2026 ‘‘Generation’’ exhibition & panel discussion at the Royal Scottish Academy
Alongside our project work, OCA was invited to contribute to the RIAS Quarterly Review (Issue 65), dedicated to the theme of Architecture & Wellbeing. Our feature article, Rooms with a View: Reframing Rural Healthcare on the North Coast, explores how architecture can foster a culture of care, examining the role of thoughtful healthcare design in supporting wellbeing, strengthening communities and deepening the relationship between people and place.
RIAS Quarterly Review [Issue 65], Rooms with a View: Reframing Rural Healthcare on the North Coast
Current projects
Over the past few months, we have secured planning permission for a number of residential projects within Edinburgh; including dormer conversions at Wilson's Park in Portobello and Rosebank Gardens in Trinity, together with Listed Building Consent for the sensitive refurbishment and alteration of a property on Nelson Street in Edinburgh's New Town. Each project seeks to carefully balance contemporary living with the character and significance of its historic setting, and we look forward to seeing these projects progress over the coming year.
We are pleased to be working with Crail Community Partnership to develop a long-term vision for Crail Parish Church, a significant Category A-listed building in Fife's East Neuk. Our proposals seek to secure the church's future as a thriving community asset through the sensitive adaptation of the building, creating new opportunities for performance, heritage interpretation and wider community use while carefully respecting its architectural and historic significance.
Sectional render of proposals for Crail Parish Church adaptive reuse as a flexible performance venue with heritage exhibition
Design work also continues to progress on the renovation and expansion of Livingston Free Church, where we are developing proposals to modernise the church's facilities, expand worship space and strengthen its role as a welcoming community resource. The project will improve accessibility, sustainability and flexibility, supporting both the church's growing congregation and its wider role within the Livingston community.
Livingston Free Church, concept proposals for the sensitive renovation and expansion of the existing church building.
Looking ahead
We continue to work with the local community organisation St Monans Auld Kirk Enterprise on the conservation and adaptive reuse of the Category A-listed kirk. Supported by The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Fife Historic Buildings Trust, the project will deliver essential fabric repairs alongside carefully considered sustainability improvements, transforming the building into a flexible, multi-purpose community venue while safeguarding an important part of Fife's built heritage.
Developing proposals for the conservation and adaptive reuse of St Monans Auld Kirk
With funding now secured, we are please to be working with Laggan Church Partnership on a feasibility study, developing proposals that explore the long-term future of the Category B-listed church as a sustainable community asset.
Elsewhere, works are nearing completion at St Giles Street, Edinburgh, a sensitive apartment refurbishment within a Category B-listed Scots Baronial tenement in Edinburgh's Old Town.
A bespoke timber spiral staircase forms the centrepiece of our St Giles Street project, seamlessly connecting the historic interiors with a new upper-floor retreat
Construction is also well underway at Morningside Park, and we look forward to sharing more on both residential projects over the coming months.
As we move through the second half of the year, we remain grateful to our clients, collaborators and communities for the opportunity to work on projects that celebrate Scotland's built heritage while creating places that will continue to serve future generations.
Thank you for reading, and as ever, we look forward to sharing more as these projects develop. For more regular updates on what we’re up to, you can follow us on Instagram, LinkedIn and Facebook
OCA Studio