Emerging from a multi-generational practice spanning four decades, Santelli Chong Architects is an architectural company grounded in values of honesty, approachability, and collaboration with a reputation for going above and beyond for their clients.

Begun in the late eighties by Al Santelli, the practice is now run by Directors Aaron Santelli and Chun Chong whose skills complement each other, matching creativity, and client focus with the pragmatism and procedure essential for contemporary architectural work. While Al Santelli has delivered the practice into their capable hands, he leaves Aaron and Chun a legacy of working principles and values that anchor the business, particularly for Aaron, who has been a participant in his father’s business throughout his life.

Santelli Chong Architects holds a strong and longstanding reputation for architectural work in education built through their relationship with the Catholic Education Western Australia (CEWA), dating back to the 1980s. The practice has worked with many schools from masterplan to full campus implementation over multiple stages and sometimes for more than two decades.  They see their strength in this specialisation as the result of building great relationships, listening to the needs of each client and holding their team to the commitments of a project in relation to time, budget and quality.

The Santelli Chong team is motivated by a passion for the places of education that they create. They hope to contribute toward positive, long-term influence, as students and staff are encouraged to feel safe, have spaces suited to their teaching and learning, be inspired and hold pride in their environment.

Santelli Chong aim to view everyone as part of the same team – client, architect, consultant, builder – working together, wherever possible, towards successful outcomes. The values that drive the practice apply to each of those relationships and the proof is in loyal connections established over time.

From the initial conceptualisation to the final execution, Santelli Architects demonstrated a high level of professionalism, expertise and commitment to delivering outstanding results. Their attention to detail, innovative design solutions and ability to translate our vision were truly commendable.  The architects at Santelli Chong, both Aaron Santelli and Chun Chong, exhibited a deep understanding of our requirements and consistently went above and beyond to ensure that the final deliverables were not only met but exceeded our expectations. Their creativity, technical proficiency and collaborative approach significantly contributed to the success of each project.   Moreover, the team’s effective communication and project management skills played a pivotal role in ensuring a smooth and timely delivery.
Andrea Millar, Principal, Liwara Catholic School.

While the work of the practice reflects deep specialisation, the nature of the work offers considerable potential for translation into other architectural typologies, given their knowledge of campus design, access compliance, low-cost institutional design, and the various specialist building types present within schools (performing arts, trades, sciences).