Published1 June 2026Updated5 July 2026
Mertcan Abay Joins Our Lichfield Studio
We’ve added to the Lichfield studio, and not at random. Mertcan Abay brings deep knowledge of Birmingham City Council and the areas around it. Here’s what that means for your project.
Mertcan Abay has joined our studio as a Part 2 architectural assistant. We’re glad to have him, and once you see what he brings, you will be too.
He's worked on hundreds of buildings - homes, extensions, and commercial schemes. An architect who only ever designs one type of building tends to treat every problem as the same problem. Someone who has moved between sectors brings options to your table that you wouldn't otherwise get.
He also arrives with a working knowledge of Birmingham City Council that takes years to build. If your project sits in Sutton Coldfield, Streetly, Four Oaks, Aldridge, Tamworth, or Lichfield, you want someone who already understands how the local planning authority thinks - not someone learning your patch on your timeline.
Mertcan knows these areas, what tends to get approved, what tends to get refused, and where the line sits between the two. For your project, that reads as fewer dead ends and a planning strategy that starts from the first conversation, not after a long ramp-up at your expense. That is the short version of why a new face in the studio is good news for you, not just for us.
What BIM means for your project
Mertcan also brings years of experience with BIM (Building Information Modelling). If that sounds like industry shorthand, here is what it does for you.
BIM builds your project as a coordinated 3D model before anything reaches site. Clashes get caught on screen, not in the ground. Drawings stay consistent with each other. Change one thing and it updates across the whole set, rather than being missed on page 14. It removes the small, expensive errors that have a habit of surfacing once the builders are already on site.
The outcome you care about: fewer surprises, tighter cost control, and a building that behaves on site the way it behaved on paper. It is a growing part of how the practice works, and Mertcan strengthens it. The more of your project that gets resolved before a single brick is laid, the less it costs you to fix later.
Planning something near Birmingham? Put a studio that knows the patch on it.
Where we’re heading next
Mertcan’s appointment is part of a wider plan. We’re building our presence around Birmingham and the surrounding towns - more capacity, more local depth, and a deeper bench for the work coming through the Lichfield studio. The growth is deliberate, and it is pointed squarely at the patch Mertcan already knows.
“We’re growing where the work is, and that means people who already know the ground. Birmingham, Sutton Coldfield and the towns around them aren’t a new market for us to learn - they’re a patch he already reads well.” — Chris Wood, Director
So if you’re planning a project in Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield, or anywhere across the Birmingham fringe, you can put Mertcan’s local knowledge - and the rest of the studio - to work on it. Talk to us about your project.
Areas We Cover
JSA Architects Across the Midlands
We work with homeowners, developers, and landlords across the Midlands. Fees, planning authorities, and project types vary by location — find local insight and project examples for your area:
Architects in Derby → — Quarndon, Kirk Langley, Duffield, Allestree, Darley Abbey, Mickleover, Littleover
Architects in Nottingham → — The Park Estate, West Bridgford, Edwalton, Mapperley Park, Wollaton, Bramcote
Architects in Lichfield → — Shenstone, Little Aston, Four Oaks, Streetly, Aldridge, Walsall, Tamworth, Whittington
Architects in Solihull → — Knowle, Dorridge, Hampton in Arden, Shirley, Dickens Heath, Olton
Architects in Sutton Coldfield → — Four Oaks, Wylde Green, Boldmere, Mere Green, Streetly, Little Aston
faq's
Common Questions
The Lichfield studio supports clients in Lichfield, Sutton Coldfield, Streetly, Four Oaks, Aldridge, Tamworth and the Birmingham fringe, working alongside JSA's Derby, Nottingham and Solihull studios across the Midlands.
Local planning knowledge helps shape a stronger strategy before drawings go too far. Understanding how Birmingham City Council and nearby planning authorities tend to respond can reduce dead ends, clarify risks early and make applications more focused from the first conversation.
A Part 2 architectural assistant has completed the second stage of UK architectural education, usually a master's-level qualification, and works on live projects while progressing toward full architect registration.
BIM, or Building Information Modelling, creates a coordinated digital model before construction starts. It helps catch clashes early, keep drawings consistent and reduce costly surprises once builders are on site.
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