Miss Sara Hayball

Sara Hayball is a PhD candidate at UWE Bristol, where her research focuses on how subconscious emotional responses to architecture impact mental and physiological health. She is particularly interested in how childhood spatial experiences influence housing design preferences in adulthood.

 

Alongside her doctoral work, Sara also contributes to research on dementia‑inclusive design, exploring how cities and neighbourhoods can better support healthy ageing. This strand of her practice brings together architecture, design, and planning, and is grounded in co‑design with people who have lived experience of dementia to ensure that environments genuinely reflect their needs and everyday realities.

 

Using psychodynamic and ethnographic methodologies across her research, Sara advocates for user‑centred design that promotes well‑being and care. She also enjoys supporting students in the design studio and is actively involved in research on architectural pedagogies for a changing built environment.

 

Sara is a member of the Centre for Sustainable Planning and Environments, the Architecture Research Group at UWE, and the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture.