Former Aberdeen council architect removed from register after chasing teenage son with a meat cleaver
Colin Doig carried out 225 hours of unpaid work after pleading guilty to 2022 assault which also left his wife seriously injuredThe Architects Registration Board has permanently removed an Aberdeen council architect from the Architects Register after he chased his 14-year-old son with a meat cleaver and seriously injured his wife.
Colin Doig has been handed an erasure order by the Arb’s professional conduct committee following the assault, which took place at his family home in Dundee in November 2022.
Erasure is applied only to the most serious offences of unacceptable professional conduct and prevents the indivudal from using the title of “architect” unless they successfully apply to rejoin the register.
Doig, Aberdeen city council’s former senior architect and a former president of Dundee’s Institute of Architects, was convicted of two offences by Dundee Sheriff Court in April 2024 and ordered to carry out 225 hours of unpaid work last June.
Arb said Doig’s conviction had the potential to diminish the reputation of the architectural profession
The Arb said the seriousness of the convictions had a material relevance to Doig’s fitness to practice as an architect and the imposition of an erasure order was “appropriate to protect the public interest”.
The regulator added the conviction, to which Doig had pleaded guilty, has the potential to diminish his reputation and “that of the profession generally and therefore the parties agree that the Registered Person’s conduct is sufficiently serious to require the imposition of a disciplinary order.”
Doig’s assault on his wife left her with a serious ankle injury which required her to undergo an operation to have eight pins and a metal plate inserted into her leg.
Doig had been living with his wife and son at his previous home address when the incident occurred on Sunday 20 November at around 10pm.
He had been drinking with his wife, who had gone to bed, before having a disagreement with his son after entering his bedroom.
His son, who cannot be identified, had then gone downstairs to the kitchen, followed by Doig, where the dispute had continued and led to Doig picking up a meat cleaver and chasing his son upstairs.
His son locked himself in the bathroom and Doig had “repeatedly punched and kicked the door, and screamed at [his son]”, according to Arb.
Doig’s wife, who had woken up during the altercation, had then attempted to intervene but was pushed to the ground by Doig and then pushed again when she attempted to get up, sustaining a spiral fracture to her left tibia.
Doig’s wife had then called the police, and Doig went downstairs to wait for the police to arrive.
The court was told how Doig’s conduct caused the child and his mother to fear that Doig would kill his son.
The Arb said it first became aware of the incident after reading a press article. Doig has accepted all details of the incident set out by Arb and declined the offer to appear before a hearing panel of the professional conduct committee to present his case.
Doig has no previous disciplinary history with Arb. In July 2023 he received a diagnosis of bipolar affective disorder type 1.
He was the sole director of Dundee architectural practice Dunard Design until the firm was dissolved in 2018. An Aberdeen city council spokesperson confirmed that Doig is no longer employed by the council.