New gong recognises achievements in the creative reuse of buildings
A gym, a museum, a school and a brewery have been shortlisted for RIBA’s first ever Reinvention Awards celebrating the UK’s best retrofit projects.
The new accolade recognises achievements in the creative reuse of buildings to increase their longevity and energy efficiency, and highlights the need to reduce demolition.
All four shortlisted projects were selected from this year’s RIBA Regional Award winners by a judging panel including the institute’s president Simon Allford, Studio PDP partner Marion Baeli and former BBC energy and environment analyst Roger Harrabin.
They include the dilapidated Mitchells & Butlers Brewery in Wolverhampton which has been transformed into an education facility by Associated Architects with Rodney Melville and Partners.
RIBA said the scheme, for the University of Wolverhampton School of Architecture and the Built Environment, was an exemplary design reflecting the site’s rich industrial heritage.
In Warwickshire, the Houlton School scheme by van Heyningen and Haward Architects reimagines the iconic Grade II-listed Rugby Radio Station transmitter building and provides three new school blocks arranged around a central courtyard.
In east London, the renovation and extension of the Museum of the Home by Wright & Wright Architects is informed by the rich history of its Grade I-listed alms house buildings and public gardens, increasing the museum’s public reach and creating one of the largest green spaces in the area.
And in the centre of the capital, the refurbishment and extension of a community gym by 6a architects with Caragh Thuring, called Great Things Lie Ahead, provides a more visible and accessible community building that allows a wide range of cultural, social, and sporting activities.
Eligible projects reused an existing building or structure, supplied carbon and operational energy where applicable, and demonstrated how the project had improved the building or structure by achieving one or more of the outcomes in RIBA’s Sustainable Outcomes Guide.
RIBA President Simon Allford said: “Looking ahead to the low carbon future, it is vital we always consider how we can reinvent existing buildings to work even better when they accommodate new uses.
“The careful husbandry of existing resources - including buildings - has a long and noble, if recently forgotten, architectural history that we are relearning - and fast.
“These remarkable projects all demonstrate that the architecture of reinvention, requires immense talent, vision and creativity.
“Historic buildings and iconic landmarks form the fabric of our collective memories. This award demonstrates that breathing new life into beloved old buildings, can reap huge rewards - for their users and our planet.
“I hope that this inaugural award will act as a catalyst, inspiring others to take up the retrofit challenge and that we will see many more exciting and ambitious examples in the future.”
The inaugural winner of the 2023 Reinvention Award will be announced at the RIBA Stirling Prize ceremony for the UK’s best new building on 19 October at Victoria Warehouse in Manchester.
No comments yet