The English people are passionate about buildings but don't care a jot who designs them, according to a new survey published by the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE) and conducted by MORI.

An overwhelming 81% of people said they are 'interested in how the built environment looks and feels', with over a third saying they are 'very interested'. But only 16% of the people polled could name any architects, living or dead. Moreover, Sir Christopher Wren was the third most frequently named living architect - despite the fact that he died in 1723.

Norman Foster, designer of the 'Wobbly Bridge', was the most well known living architect and Richard Rogers, architect of the Millennium Dome, was second. Wren, who designed St. Paul's Cathedral, was the third most frequently chosen person in answer to the question 'name a living architect'.

Few people were able to correctly match three well-known recent buildings, which between them have attracted several million visitors, with their designers. 13% of people correctly said Foster designed the Millennium Bridge, 7% of people rightly said Rogers was the architect of the Dome and 8% were correct to say Nicholas Grimshaw designed the Eden Project in Cornwall.

The public also seems to be ambivalent about the role of architects in society. When asked which three professions they most value, it is doctors, teachers and social workers who lead the way with architects trailing down the list with only 5% recognition, amazingly even lower than lawyers.

When asked whose work they least value, architects just couldn't compete with the usual suspects. 41% named estate agents, 31% said journalists and 19% thought accountants were the least valued profession. Surprisingly, there was also antagonism towards town planners with 24% of people putting them down as one of the least valued professions. Architects were least valued by 9% of respondents.

The survey aimed to find out how much people valued the buildings and public spaces around them and their interest in the way they have been designed and constructed.

Jon Rouse, Chief Executive of CABE, said today: "Buildings are with us every second of every day. It doesn't matter which architect designs them. What is important is that they are welcoming, easy to find your way around, built in a robust way, and fit in to their surroundings. This matters just as much whether the buildings are homes, schools, hospitals, shops or offices.

The fact that the vast majority of people - 81% - say that they are interested in the look and feel of the buildings that they use and visit is hugely encouraging. We at CABE think that too many buildings are still being designed in a mediocre and half-baked way. We are only going to be able to change this if people make it clear that they will only settle for the best when it comes to the design of new places, by objecting to shoddy buildings which are proposed for their area and making their opinions known to their local planning authority."