Leading digital agency Cantarus has partnered with the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) to deliver a major website transformation, a cornerstone of the digital strand of RIBA’s House of Architecture programme.
The new riba.org represents a bold digital evolution for one of the UK’s most historic professional bodies, aligning seamlessly with its refreshed brand identity developed by Johnson Banks. Designed and built by Cantarus on Umbraco Cloud, the platform reimagines RIBA’s digital presence around accessibility, usability, and performance.
"This project plays a critical part in RIBA’s digital strand of its House of Architecture programme, a long-term initiative to create a connected, accessible, and inspiring digital home for the global architecture community. It’s a genuine transformation that’s also changing how RIBA operates internally, from e-commerce to content workflows, enabling a more integrated experience for its members."
– Lee Adams, CEO, Cantarus
"This programme is a fundamental step in delivering RIBA’s House of Architecture vision – creating a single, connected digital platform that better supports our members, practices and wider community. Our ambition from the outset was to move beyond incremental website change and establish a strong, scalable foundation for how RIBA delivers digital services, content and learning in the future. Working with Cantarus has enabled us to shape a platform that is designed around member needs, organisational growth, and long-term digital sustainability.”
– Aaron Woods (Interim) Technology Director, RIBA
RIBA’s digital estate had evolved organically over many years, resulting in siloed platforms, inconsistent design, and fragmented user journeys. The new website brings riba.org and RIBAJ together within a single, integrated CMS, creating a cohesive ecosystem that unifies content, commerce, and community engagement.
The platform introduces advanced information architecture, personalisation, and recommended content capabilities to provide an intuitive experience for RIBA’s diverse audiences, from students and early-career architects to chartered members, practices, and the public.
"A website is often a member’s primary touchpoint, so we had a duty to deliver something that felt truly world-class, a platform that both honours RIBA’s heritage and moves it into a bold new digital future. We’re incredibly proud to be part of this momentous chapter in RIBA’s story."
– Rob Helsby, Creative Director, Cantarus
Building on the new RIBA visual identity developed by Johnson Banks, the site applies principles of Swiss modernism and motion design to create a digital experience that is both dynamic and functional. Every detail, from animated transitions to immersive content features, was crafted to meet responsive design principles, ensuring a seamless experience for all users across all devices.
"Our challenge was to bring that brand to life digitally, ensuring it worked beautifully for both RIBA and RIBAJ, and that it captured the creative spirit of the architecture community," said Helsby.
The collaboration between RIBA and Cantarus was described as "highly productive, transparent, and energising" by Martin Woodhall, Technical Delivery Manager at Cantarus.
"RIBA were clear about their goals from day one and deeply engaged throughout the process," he said. "The project included a complex midstream migration from Azure to Umbraco Cloud, enabling faster deployment, stronger stability, and robust security, without compromising performance or SEO integrity."
The new platform lays the foundation for RIBA’s House of Architecture vision, to create a cohesive, evolving digital ecosystem that connects every facet of the organisation’s work and makes it easier for members to access RIBA services. Central to this is a renewed focus on delivering exceptional member experiences, ensuring that every interaction across RIBA’s digital landscape feels intuitive, inspiring, and connected.
The next phase will see RIBAJ launched under the same digital framework, uniting both brands through a shared design system and Umbraco Cloud architecture. This will enhance editorial consistency, streamline workflows, and create a unified experience across RIBA’s entire digital estate.
Looking ahead, the framework will also underpin the reimagined RIBA Academy shopfront and other upcoming digital member experiences – bringing learning, publications, business services, and e-commerce together through one consistent experience and a single sign-on environment.
"It’s laid the groundwork for a really bright future between RIBA and Cantarus," Helsby concluded.
For more information about Cantarus and its services, visit www.cantarus.com or contact [email protected].
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