13 wins at the RIBA Regional Awards
We're very pleased to announce that 13 of our projects emerged as winners at this year's RIBA Regional Awards.
The wins spanned building types; from residential, to education, to cultural. You can read more about our involvement and what the judges found particularly exemplar about each of the buildings below.
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Ibstock Place School - RIBA London Award
"Overall, the whitewood glulam, profiled oak wall and ceiling linings, timber and terrazzo flooring and simple glazed tiles provide for a consistent architectural language which the judges felt was architecturally synthesised, exquisitely detailed and well-co-ordinated with M&E requirements.
The judges also felt the ventilation strategy worked impeccably. The fabric-first design minimises energy demand through natural ventilation, night-time cooling and shading, supplemented by mixed-mode mechanical ventilation with heat recovery for winter months. Three glazed lanterns sitting atop of the roof support the simple natural ventilation strategy and daylighting. The glazed west elevation provides tranquil garden views. The plant serving the commercial kitchen is in the basement, avoiding impact on dining spaces or neighbours.” – RIBA Awards Judges
Royal Wharf Primary School - RIBA London Award
"All the spaces are light and airy, radiating a real sense of happiness and freshness throughout. [...] The building is naturally ventilated. Windows have been designed to reduce the need for artificial light. The classrooms have exposed concrete soffits which provide thermal mass, and the windows are automatically actuated to facilitate night cooling. Heating and hot water are fed from the local district heating network. A detailed post-occupancy evaluation is currently underway to ensure that all energy saving systems are functioning correctly." – RIBA Awards Judges
Lambeth Palace Library & Archive - RIBA London Award
We provided MEP, Acoustics, Lighting and Sustainability Consultancy from project inception to completion to bring the eight-storey, contemporary brick building in the grounds of the Grade I listed Palace to life.
Hampstead Green - Pegasus Life - RIBA London Award
"Sustainability is put high on the design agenda with super-insulated walls, MVHR units to all residences, and air source heat pumps providing all of the heating and cooling needs." – RIBA Awards Judges
Fitzroy Road, Primrose Hill - RIBA London Award
"The existing fabric has been upgraded. Insulation and an air-tight membrane have been added, and double glazing installed to all existing and new openings. The deep lightwells allow passive cross-ventilation and for a mechanical ventilation with a heat recovery unit to serve the upper-level spaces where unwanted heat gains are most likely. Rather than a more traditional option, a chilled water-cooling system has been installed, driven by an air source heat pump. A capillary mesh chilled ceiling cools the upper floors, while the chilled water is linked to the underfloor heating pipework on the lower floors." – RIBA Awards Judges
198 CAL - RIBA London Award
We produced detailed reports for this Black-led and -owned visual arts organisation situated on Railton Road - Brixton’s former ‘Frontline’.
Sands Community Centre - RIBA London Award
"Orientation plays a big part in reducing energy use. South-facing glazing is shaded by overhangs. High-level actuated vents and low-level openable windows passively ventilate the spaces. The whole centre is powered by one domestic boiler, and PVs contribute to the energy supply."– RIBA Awards Judges
Magdalene College New Library Building - RIBA East Award
"The design of this library has been strongly influenced by the requirements to passively light (characterised by the roof lanterns), and naturally ventilate the spaces (characterised by the stack effect ventilation chimneys and openings in the roof). Overall, the project presents exceptional engagement with environmental design principles. The predicted energy performance as a result exceeds the RIBA 2030 benchmark to be one of the best performing buildings of this year’s submissions. The project is also one of the top submissions in terms of whole-life carbon considerations, and has addressed the RIBA 2025 benchmark." – RIBA Awards Judges
Civil Engineering Building - RIBA East Award
"The measured energy performance of this educational building betters predicted performance, which must be viewed in relation to the high unregulated loads expected with this sort of specialised facility. The project is most notable however for the implementation of sustainable engineering principles and the innovation presented. The engineers have addressed the onerous superstructure and substructure carbon demands of the brief with extensive research to ensure the delivery of circular design principles, and in doing so, have also developed a commendable Energy Cost Metric to evaluate the whole-life benefits of such strategies. Overall, it represents an exemplar project in sustainable engineering that presents a benchmark for future projects to follow." – RIBA Awards Judges
Ely Museum - RIBA East Award and RIBA East Conservation Award
"In sustainability terms, a fabric-first approach has been implemented to enhance thermal performance and contribute to energy savings. In terms of embodied carbon considerations, significant merit is presented by the existing museum building being retained rather than demolished." – RIBA Awards Judges
Sevenoaks School Boarding House – RIBA South East Award
"The boarding house seeks to use sustainable approaches too: the structure is of CLT, on a thin concrete raft, which minimises embodied carbon: the house is all electric, has MVHR ventilation systems and its heat comes from an air source heat pump installation." – RIBA Awards Judges
Maggie's Yorkshire – RIBA Yorkshire Award
We provided M&E Engineering for Yorkshire’s cancer support and information centre. The building's low energy design takes a fabric first approach, with excellent air tightness, building form and fabric thermal performance making the demand for heat exceptionally low. Large glazing areas favouring the low winter sun make good use of solar heat during the winter months.
Exeter College Cohen Quad, Oxford – RIBA South Award
We provided MEP and Acoustics services. Wherever possible, Exeter College’s newest addition utilises natural ventilation with manual and automatic openings, and utilises large amounts of exposed thermal mass to reduce the need for active conditioning. Through detailed coordination with the architect and structural engineer, most services are discreetly concealed within the exposed concrete.