Twelve developments named finalists in the Hertfordshire Building Futures Awards

Twelve developments across Hertfordshire have been shortlisted as exceptional buildings and sustainable projects in the 2018 Hertfordshire Building Futures. All twelve finalists, which include individual houses, public buildings and housing developments, will be showcased at the prestigious awards ceremony on 4th October at Knebworth House, where the winning schemes will be announced.

Now in its tenth year, these biennial Awards, hosted by the Building Futures Partnership, celebrate sustainability, innovation and design excellence in Hertfordshire. There are four award categories, namely Project of the Year, Design Excellence, Retrofit for the Future and Most Sustainable Construction.

The finalists for each category are as follows:

Project of the Year

• St Albans Museum and Gallery
• St Albans Cathedral (see above)
• Cassiobury Hub in Watford

St Albans Museum and Gallery

Design Excellence

• Cassiobury Hub in Watford
• The Deerings in Harpenden
• 29 Firs Walk in Tewin
• Artworks in Hitchin
• Garden Avenue in Hatfield
• Furzen Crescent in Hatfield
• Tudor Way in Hertford
• The Reserve in Waltham Cross
• The New Science Building at the University of Hertfordshire

Cassiobury Hub

Retrofit for the Future

• AppleTree Farmhouse in Chorleywood
• St Albans Museum and Gallery

Most Sustainable Construction

• Johnson Court in West Dene
• Cassiobury Hub in Watford
• The New Science Building at the University of Hertfordshire
• The Deerings in Harpenden

Jon Rowland, from the judging panel, commented: “Hertfordshire is one of the few counties to reward good design and is therefore to be congratulated. This year we, the judges, were struck by the high quality of submissions.

“They are all different in character and scale; but they show that with good design teams a better quality of development can be achieved that is robust, functional and beautiful. Something we should all aim for.”

The Headline Sponsor of the 2018 Awards is Hertfordshire Building Control, who carry out building control services on behalf of seven local authorities in Hertfordshire. There are four award categories, namely Project of the Year, Design Excellence, Retrofit for the Future and Most Sustainable Construction.

Rachel Legood, from Hertfordshire Building Control, commented: “Hertfordshire Building Control is committed to improving the quality of buildings for our customers and our communities.

“We work closely with many excellent designers, architects, developers and builders who share our values and strive to deliver on behalf of their customers innovative, sustainable and inspiring buildings.

“Where excellence is achieved we believe we should celebrate it. We therefore take great pleasure in sponsoring this awards ceremony.”

The Project of the Year category is sponsored by BRE Group, a world leading multi-disciplinary building science centre with a mission to improve the built environment through research and knowledge generation.

The Design Excellence category is sponsored by Places for People, a placemaking and regeneration company that takes a commercial approach to delivering social outcomes.

The Most Sustainable Construction category is sponsored by Willmott Dixon Construction Limited, a privately-owned contracting and interior fit-out group. The Retrofit for the Future category is sponsored by MHA MacIntyre Hudson, a firm of chartered accountants, tax and business advisers.

Alongside the Awards, Hertfordshire Building Futures co-ordinates a Design Review Panel, providing independent review of projects during the planning process, and has developed a Sustainable Design Toolkit, which details guidance and regulations relevant to all types of buildings.

For more information about the Awards and other Building Futures’ initiatives, click here or email the Building Futures team at buildingfutures@hertfordshire.gov.uk