ARCHITECTURE BY PROFESSIONALS
ELY DESIGN GROUP
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About Us
Ely Design Group is an architectural design practice specialising in all aspects of the design and surveying requirements of residential properties.
ESTABLISHED 1974
ELY DESIGN GROUP
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Our offices are in Stretham, near Ely, in Cambridgeshire being formed in 1974 by John Norman and initially based in Wicken.
Allen Norman, (John’s son), joined the practice in 1999 and took over the running of the business as Managing Director in 2011. Generally operating within about 25 miles of Stretham, the practice area takes in Downham Market to the North, Bury St Edmunds to the East, Royston to the South and Huntingdon to the West. Allen’s aim is to help clients transform their ideas into well-designed and comfortable living spaces adding value to their homes. Whilst every property and project is unique, his many years of experience in this field enable him to provide guidance so that common pitfalls might be avoided enabling projects to finish on time and to budget. Ely Design Group has designed many varied projects including houses and bungalows, extensions, loft conversions and alterations and has experience in working with listed properties and commercial property developments.
ARCHITECTURE BY PROFESSIONALS
ELY DESIGN GROUP
|
Allen Norman | Managing Director
Allen started young. He now accepts that holding the end of the tape for his
father’s site surveys at age six or seven probably did shape his career.
On leaving school, Allen joined the Estate Management Department at the
University of Cambridge as a Trainee Building Surveyor, studying part-time at
De Montfort University, Leicester. He graduated with 2:1 honours in Building
Surveying in 1995. In 1996 he joined Rapleys, the national commercial property and planning consultants, qualifying as a Chartered Building Surveyor at the first attempt in 1997.
Allen joined his father at Ely Design Group as a partner in 1999 and became
Managing Director in 2011. He specialises in bespoke new homes, extensions, alterations and loft conversions across Cambridgeshire and the surrounding area.
He is a Fellow of the Faculty of Party Wall Surveyors and a Member of the
Pyramus & Thisbe Society, regularly acting as Party Wall Surveyor for clients
carrying out building works and for adjoining owners. He is also regularly
appointed as Third Surveyor under the Party Wall etc. Act 1996.
Allen is married with two children and lives in the nearby village of Wilburton.
Sadly, Allen’s father John, who founded the practice in 1974, died in June 2016.
Our Team
Mary Watkins
Office Manager
Mary joined Labgear as a Customer Services Advisor after leaving school. There she gained NVQ’s in both Customer Service and Office Administration.
She left Labgear in 1999 and joined the University of Cambridge Estate Management Department where she provided secretarial support for the Planning and Property Department. Whilst there Mary obtained a Modern Apprenticeship in Office Administration.
Mary joined Ely Design Group in 2002 and deals with general administrative and secretarial services to ensure the smooth running of the office.
Mary is married, has two children and lives close by in Soham.
Lucy Norman
Architectural 3D Visualiser
Lucy is Allen’s daughter and the third generation of the Norman family to work at Ely Design Group.
She joined the practice in 2017 and completed her NVQ Level 3 in Business Administration, followed by a Diploma in Interior Design in 2018.
Lucy now produces all of the practice’s photo-realistic 3D images and CGI renders — the visualisations that let clients see exactly what their home will look like before a brick is laid. She works closely with Allen throughout the design process, helping clients to explore material choices, room layouts and finishes at a stage when changes are still straightforward to make.
Margo
The Office Dog!
Margo is Ely Design Group’s resident office dog, joining the practice in 2024. She provides an important counterbalance to the more serious business of architectural design
A great addition to our family and EDG.
Raphael Stipic
Surveying Associate
In 2004, after 16 successful years within the Telecoms industry, managing projects and budgets to £23m and teams of up to 150 project staff and inspired by changes brought about by the Housing Act 2004, Raphael decided to change career and become an independent building surveyor with the sole aim of providing competitively priced survey products throughout East Anglia.
After successfully attaining the Diploma in Surveying Practice from The College of Estate Management, he now specialises in and undertakes all types of residential building surveys including listed buildings. Raphael is also a council member of the Residential Property Surveyors Association responsible for the East Anglia region.
Raphael is married with two sons and lives in Kedington – Suffolk.
Neil Ford
Website & Marketing Associate
Neil’s background is in sales and business management, management training, and website optimisation and promotion. He works closely with Allen and Mary maintaining the company’s website, and developing office systems and business opportunities.
Neil lives in Stretham, and is married with four grown up daughters.
He and his wife, Jane, enjoy spending time with their girls and exploring the East Anglia countryside.