He grew up in the town of Malvern, Worcestershire and was educated at Hanley Castle Grammar School before studying at the University of Nottingham (1968–71) and the Architectural Association (1972-4).
In 1985 he formed Branson Coates Architecture with Doug Branson before establishing his own studio of architecture and design in 2006.
In 2011 he was made Emeritus Professor at the Royal College of Art and is currently Chair of the Academic Court at the London School of Architecture.