Koha

‘Koha’ is a Māori word and means a gift /offering, donation or contribution in New Zealand.

We are a practice of both UK and New Zealand Registered Architects based in Penryn, near Falmouth, Cornwall. We believe that design is a collaborative process, where each person makes a valuable contribution in bringing their unique talents and gifts to a project.

Koha Architects formed in 2012 following the successful bid for the Old Cathedral School project in Truro, Cornwall.

Founders Gary Wyatt and Derek Jackson share a long history of collaborating on projects through the years together in Sheffield, Barcelona, Manchester and London. We have over 60 years of combined experience in practice across a wide range of building types and various market sectors in Cornwall, the UK generally, and overseas including Spain and New Zealand.

Koha is made up of a small team of architects in Cornwall that enjoys working together on projects of varying size and complexity, which helps us to remain flexible in our approach. We like to collaborate with other consultants and technical specialists, and lead small and large teams throughout a project.

Listening to our clients, understanding their hopes and aspirations, and developing a good working relationship is very important to us, and we hope that clients enjoy their experience of working with Koha Architects.

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Our Team

  • Gary Wyatt

    Director, Registered Architect

    Gary is a UK and New Zealand registered architect with 37 years of experience of working in the architectural profession.

    Gary is the founding director of Koha Architects which formed during his time spent living and working in New Zealand. 

    Gary has developed an expertise in working on existing buildings and believes this is a critical priority for the profession in moving forward sustainably in the built environment.

  • Derek Jackson

    Director, RIBA Chartered Architect

    Derek has consistently produced imaginative responses to many challenging briefs. He has led many prestigious developments including the creation of new live recording studios for MTV in Leicester Square.

  • Bernard Vella

    Director, Registered Architect

    Bernard grew up in Malta where he obtained his degree in architecture. Subsequently, he worked for three years in Malta and two years in Sydney developing mostly high-end residential as part of his working practice. Upon his return to Malta, he was the director of an award-winning practice.  He joined Koha Architects in October 2020.

  • Antony Morvan

    Senior Technologist, CIAT Associate

    Antony joined Koha in early 2013 as a graduate Graphic Designer and has gained over 10 years of architectural experience and a subsequent HNC in Construction to become a CIAT Associate Technologist, with the aim of becoming a Chartered Technologist.

  • Andrew Lewis

    Senior Architectural Technician

    Andrew is based in the Eden Valley, Cumbria having worked on a range of project types in Cornwall from street furniture to masterplanning since 2008. He is a design graduate from Falmouth University, has been with Koha since 2013 and has a keen interest in natural building materials. He loves being out in the mountains with his family and also enjoys really good coffee.

  • Joshua Crook

    Architectural Assistant (Part 1)

    Joshua first joined Koha for his year 10 work experience, where he came third in the RIBA South West Work Experience Competition. Since then he has graduated Falmouth University with BA (Hons) in Architecture in 2023, rejoining Koha Architects shortly afterwards.

  • Caroline Jackson

    Finance Manager

    Caroline joined the team in March 2014. Her main role is to provide administrative support for the team which ranges from bookkeeping to client documentation. She has many years of experience in both office administration and IT.