AYA 2024 shortlists: Refurbishment and Reinvention Architect of the Year

Earlier this year BD announced all the architects who made it on to the shortlists for our prestigious annual Architect of the Year Awards.

Now we are shining the spotlight on each category in turn and publishing a selection of the images that impressed the judges.

This year’s judges include: Yẹmí Aládérun, head of development, Meridian Water, Enfield Council; Alexandra Andone, associate director, PRP; Amr Assaad, board director, Buckley Gray Yeoman; Lee Bennett, partner, design chair and school lead, Sheppard Robson; Sarah Cary, chief development officer Imperial College, White City Campus; Irene Craik, director, Levitt Bernstein; Alex Ely, founding director, Mae; Martyn Evans, creative director, LandsecU+I; Gavin Hale-Brown, director, Henley Halebrown; Tanvir Hasan, director emeritus, Donald Insall Associates; Lee Higson, board director, Eric Parry Architects; Nigel Hugill, chief executive, Urban & Civic; Kirsten Lees, managing partner, Grimshaw; Oliver Lowrie, director and founder, Ackroyd Lowrie; Anna Mansfield, director, Publica; Michelle McDowell, non-executive director, Civic; Ian McKnight, founding partner, Hall McKnight; John McRae, director and trustee, Orms; David Partridge, chairman, Related Argent; Sarah Robinson, asociate director, The King’s Foundation; Philippa Simpson, director for buildings and renewal, Barbican Centre; Kevin Singh, head, Manchester School of Architecture; Karl Singporewala, founder, Karl Singporewala Design Bureau; Jonathan Smales, founder and CEO, Human Nature; Elizabeth Smith, chairman and regional director, Purcell; Alan Stanton, principal director, Stanton Williams; Amin Taha, chairperson, Groupwork; Magali Thomson, project lead for placemaking, Great Ormond Street Hospital; Tatiana von Preussen, co-founder and director, vPPR; Jo Wright, director, Perkins&Will.

Today’s shortlist is for the category of Refurbishment and Reinvention Architect of the Year.

Allford Hall Monaghan Morris

Four London reinventions span sectors and eras. In the East End, these include the Grade II listed former Royal London Hospital building, which has been restored and expanded to create a new town hall for Tower Hamlets. In the West End, 1 Berkeley Street is a hotel-led mixed use development, which reused and extended two 1970s building in Piccadilly, retaining 81% of the frame and façade.

Buckley Gray Yeoman

YY London, a reimagination of a first-generation Canary Wharf building, cut overall energy demand by 62% while saving 10,260 tonne CO2e by avoiding demolition. Elsewhere in the capital, Ice Factory in Belgravia converted a former industrial building into workspace, retail and restaurants over five floors. Two ongoing projects also feature - Thirty High is a 29-storey office retrofit in Victoria, while 20 Giltspur Street extends and refurbishes a 2001 office building in the City of London.

dMFK Architects

The practice describes itself as ‘forensic’ in analysing, editing and transforming existing buildings with the aim of making them the best versions of themselves. Recent work includes Voysey House, a restoration of an Arts & Crafts former wallpaper factory in Chiswick which improved the EPC rating to A. Three other office retrofits/extensions are featured: Chancery House, Myo New Street Square and 45 Whitfield Street, all in central London.

EPR Architects

The practice last year completed the seven year transformation of the Grade II* listed Old War Office in Whitehall into The OWO, which combines a luxury hotel, residences, bars and restaurants. Also in London, EPR reinvented a former Victorian orphanage into its own London studio. Two Manchester projects include the King Street Townhouse spa and gym, created in a Grade II listed Italian Renaissance building.

Gibson Thornley

Two museum projects are included in Gibson Thornley’s entry. In London, the second phase of the V&A’s Photography Centre was co-designed in collaboration with a group of young people to ensure the new gallery spaces felt inclusive. In Aylesbury, the Grade II listed Bucks County Museum has been de-cluttered and reworked to give the collection improved coherence. Ongoing reinventions include the Richard Seifert-designed Maple House on London’s Tottenham Court Road.

Hawkins\Brown

The practice’s diverse entry features the recently completed £42million reworking of Central Foundation Boys’ School in central London. The ten-year upgrade was phased to enable the school to remain operational throughout. Other submitted projects include the £19million refurbishment of Waltham Forest Town Hall in east London, and the regeneration of Tileyard North at Rutland Mills, located on the Wakefield waterfront adjacent to The Hepworth Wakefield gallery.

Morris+Company

Morris+Company describes its approach as ‘seamlessly blending historic preservation with contemporary innovation, prioritising sustainability while enhancing user experience portfolio’. Its entry of four London projects includes the net zero carbon in construction and operation transformative retrofit of 3 Sheldon Square in Paddington, and 15 Norton Folgate, a heritage led refurbishment with new build on the City of London fringes, both delivered for British Land.

Morrow + Lorraine

Four office reinvention projects include Hub Victoria in central London, which added 9300sq m of capacity by expanding upwards above an occupied building, without the need for structural reinforcements. In West Kensington, The Fold is an upgrade of a 19^th century furniture depository-turned-office. Current projects include 25 Moorgate, which reconfigures a building designed by Foggo Associates. Interventions include the addition of a new rooftop pavilion.