RIBA reveals 30 new UK projects as 2023 National Awards winners

The 30 best new designs from around the United Kingdom have been announced by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) as part of its 2023 National Awards cycle, presenting a useful annual survey of the country’s top architectural design trends in what is now the program’s 57th consecutive year.

Projects evincing themes of post-pandemic community building and sustainability featured heavily on a list that is likely to be seen later in the shortlist for this year’s Stirling Prize. 

In a statement, RIBA President Simon Allford said: “At this time, when building collaboratively and working towards a sustainable future are paramount, the 2023 RIBA National Award winners offer a rich source of inspiration. Each project looks, in its own way, to address both its client brief and the wider role architecture can play in serving society. Among the winners are a number of projects that offer a model for an architecture that is more widely responsible. These buildings intelligently illustrate the potential of well-designed spaces to bring people together and, ultimately, architecture’s power to change our world for the better.”

“Our awards are a marker of progressive excellence in sustainable design, very much aligned with our wider commitment to a low-carbon future. These are examples of forward thinking and ingenuity that raise the bar for us all,” he continued.

The full list of winning projects can be viewed below.

• A House for Artists by Apparata Architects (Barking, London) 
• Agar Grove Phase 1b by Mæ, (Camden, London) 
• Blackbird by Nicholas Lyons of LYONS ARCHITECTS with Hamish Herford (Gloucestershire) 
• Bloqs by 5th Studio (Enfield, London) 
• Brick House by Howells Architects (Birmingham, West Midlands) 

• Central Somers Town Community Facilities and Housing by Adam Khan Architects (Camden, London) 
• Courtauld Connects - The Courtauld Institute of Art by Witherford Watson Mann Architects (London) 
• Cuddymoss by Ann Nisbet Studio (Ayrshire, Scotland) 
• Edith Neville Primary School by Hayhurst & Co Architects (Camden, London) 
• Great Things Lie Ahead, 2020, Holborn House by 6a architects (Holborn, London) 

• Hanover by Lifschutz Davidson Sandilands (Mayfair, London) 
• Hill House by McGonigle McGrath (County Down, Northern Ireland) 
• Hundred Acre Wood by Denizen Works (Argyll and Bute, Scotland) 
• Hushh House by Elliott Architects (North Yorkshire) 
• John Morden Centre by Mæ (Greenwich, London) 

• Laidlaw Music Centre by University of St Andrews, Flanagan Lawrence (Fife, Scotland) 
• Lavender Hill Courtyard Housing by Sergison Bates Architects (Clapham, London) 
• Lea Bridge Library Pavilion by Studio Weave (Waltham Forest, London)
• Manchester Jewish Museum by Citizens Design Bureau (Greater Manchester) 
• Middle Avenue by Rural Office (Farnham, Surrey) 

• Pen y Common by Nidus Architects and Rural Office (Hay-on-Wye, Wales)
• Radley College Chapel Extension by Purcell Architecture Limited (Purcell), (Oxford) 
• Rhossili House by Maich Swift Architects (Rhossili, Wales) 
• Saltmarsh House by Niall McLaughlin Architects (Isle of Wight) 
• Spruce House and Studio by ao-ft (Walthamstow, London) 

• Swing Bridge by Tonkin Liu (Crystal Palace Park, London) 
• Taylor & Chatto Courts and Wilmott Court, Frampton Park Estate by Henley Halebrown (Hackney, London) 
• The Fireworks Factory at Woolwich Works by Bennetts Associates (London) 
• The Kit Kat Club at the Playhouse Theatre by Carmody Groarke (London) 
• University of Warwick - Faculty of Arts by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios (West Midlands)