York Design Awards celebrate and encourage good design in the city. Good architecture and sensitive building restoration play an important part in what makes York such a special place, routinely topping UK cities’ quality of life surveys.
York Design Awards’ mission is to support that for the future and to encourage designers of new developments in the city to maintain the very highest standards – to create buildings and spaces that ‘delight’.
Founded by former Lord Mayor of York, Janet Hopton, the awards scheme is funded entirely by independent sponsors and donors and is run entirely by unpaid volunteers.
Awards, judged by an independent panel including eminent national and international figures in architecture and design, are presented annually in a range of categories with the scope for more than one award in each category (with the exception of the Lord Mayor’s Award).
Homeowners, building owners, architects, developers, restoration and construction companies are all encouraged to submit schemes for consideration. The judges have praised the inclusiveness of the awards scheme which recognises the role of good design not just in major developments but also in smaller schemes, restorations and extensions and in the public realm.
Alongside the judges’ choices, The Press (York) sponsors “The Press People’s Choice Award” where local residents vote for the scheme which most ‘delights’ them.
The York Design Awards aims to recognise the importance of new construction and landscape projects in the city, celebrating ‘the spaces in between’, the setting of buildings plus open space and public realm.
The principal aim of the York Design Awards is to encourage architects, developers, owners, planners, conservationists, to aspire to, achieve, and ensure excellence in new build and in conservation schemes within the City of York Council local authority boundary (completed within the previous three years). York has a wonderful legacy of architecture from the past but much of what was being built in recent years running up to 2006, as elsewhere, was bland and unremarkable, not a fitting legacy for the 21st Century.
There are excellent architects and craftsmen, with a variety of high quality conservation and other skills, available in the city and, by highlighting their work, the Awards hope to raise aspirations generally. With several major developments in the pipe line, there is a great opportunity for developers to contribute to York`s future heritage and it is crucial that the city continues to attract the best developers from outside the city – those aspiring to the highest quality of design, bringing design talent and construction expertise with them.
An essential aspect of the York Design Awards is having a panel of four independent judges from outside the city. Most of our judges serve for three or four years. They have expertise in architecture and conservation and are known and respected for their work regionally, nationally and internationally.
Each year the panel site visits over two days every scheme entered. Reflecting the great wealth of creative development taking place in and around York, this involves assessing more than thirty entries every year
This year, we have removed the option for applicants to enter a specific category. This decision has been made to allow our judges to recognise truly excellent design without artificial barriers.
Instead, entries will be judged against a set of criteria and awards will be given according to the discretion of the judges.
We will be asking applicants to explain how their chosen scheme meets the judging criteria of: Quality of Design, Context, Materials & Workmanship, Sustainability and the Ability to Delight.
Andy Davey is the senior partner at Simpson & Brown Architects, based in Edinburgh, which specialises in the scholarly conservation of historic buildings, the adaptive re-use and remodelling of existing buildings, and the contextual design of new buildings in sensitive historic or landscape settings. The firm aspires to be one of the leading ‘creative conservation’ practices in the UK and works on a wide range of projects at home and abroad. Andy trained at the Bartlett School of Architecture at University College London and has been responsible for many of Simpson & Brown’s more prestigious commissions, including the recent multi-RIBA Award winning projects for the Centre of Ceramic Art at York Art Gallery and the acclaimed new Visitor Centre at Rievaulx Abbey. He also has a decidedly odd and inexplicable interest in heritage potato varieties.
Janine Riley is a conservation architect with experience of private practice, education and local government. In the rapidly growing practice of Martin Stancliffe Architects she worked on many special buildings and sites for the National Trust, and was project architect on Culloden Tower and Beamsley Almshouses for the Landmark Trust (both award winning schemes).
As senior lecturer at Huddersfield University, and in response to the new “International Degree (RIBA pt1) and Master of Architecture (RIBA pt2)” courses, Janine broadened the scope of History and Theory modules to include an understanding of very different development contexts. During this time she worked on conservation projects with the agency caring for the Medina of Fez Morocco (UNESCO World Heritage Site) and with the New Delhi Planning School.
More recently Janine had the privilege of being the Conservation Architect for City of York Council (16yrs), advising on all aspects (except archaeology) of the historic built environment from small schemes of repair/alteration/new build to major sites of renewal such as the Terry’s Factory site and Red Lodge at New Earswick Garden Village – the latter schemes in collaboration with planning colleagues.
Pete Dwyer is the recently retired Director of Children and Young People at North Yorkshire County Council and previously Director of Children’s Services at City of York Council. His time in York saw the council become the only authority outside London to be judged as "excellent" by Ofsted in each of the four years since annual performance assessments for all aspects of children's services were introduced.
Architect Guy Hanson is Design and Sustainability Manager at City of York Council. He manages the "Design, Conservation & Sustainable Development" team providing specialist advice to the council, developers and the public in areas of architecture, urbanism, building conservation, archaeology, landscape design, sustainability, ecology and countryside management. He has held other roles at the council designing and project managing the delivery of capital works public realm and regeneration projects funded by the council, such as a £1.6m refurbishment and new business plan for Newgate Market.
Architect Charlotte Harrison graduated from the Bartlett in 1999. Charlotte co-organised an international festival of architecture in Leeds before joining Allford Hall Monaghan Morris Architects, where she ran projects for Shelter and the Barbican Arts Centre. Together with Glen McGowan she formed mass architecture in 2004 in London and moved to York in 2009. Charlotte has been a design tutor and lecturer in 20th Century Theory of Architecture at Universities in London, Leeds and Sheffield. She currently sits on the Yorkshire and Humber Regional Design Review Panel and the Regional RIBA Council. Charlotte has been a Royal Academy exhibitor in the Architectural Drawing category, as well as winning Awards in York and London. Charlotte is a Freeman of the City of York and London.
After working at the University of York for 37 years, Elizabeth Heaps retired in 2013. Her final post from 2007-2013 was as Pro Vice Chancellor for Estates and Strategic Projects, where she was responsible for the £750 million Heslington East campus expansion. She also oversaw development projects worth some £100m on the original Heslington West campus. Elizabeth was a member of the RIBA Higher Education Design Quality Forum and a contributor to conferences in the area of planning and strategic development of estates. She was also a Lay Assessor for the RIBA awards 2013. A qualified librarian, she is a member of the Company of Merchant Adventurers of the City of York, and on the Board of the York Archaeological Trust.
Eamonn Keogh is Senior Associate at planning consultancy O'Neill Associates. He has a broad range of experience in the public and private sectors, working directly with clients at both the strategic and detailed levels to deliver results that add value to property assets. He has previously worked for social housing provider Places for People and planning and urban design consultancy Turley Associates.
Architect Lucy Morris joined William Saunders in 2013, having previously worked at Native for almost eight years. She has undertaken voluntary projects in Kenya and the USA providing disaster and humanitarian relief supporting social, environmental and housing needs. She is Co-Chair of the York Architectural Association (RIBA)
Ann is Chair of the York Design Awards committee. She was elected to City of York Council in Sept 1986 until May 2019 representing the areas of Foxwood, Woodthorpe and then Dringhouses. During her 32 years as a councillor, Ann served on numerous committees and was an Executive Member for, variously, Planning and Transport, Environment and Leisure. For the last four years she was Chair of the Planning Committee. She was Lord Mayor of York in 1993- 1994 and was awarded an MBE for services to local government in 2018.
Richard Watson is a Solicitor and Director of Crombie Wilkinson Solicitors LLP with which he has been associated for 40 years. His specialisms include Charity Law, Charitable Trusts and Housing Law. He served as a Councillor for 21 years and chaired the City of York Council Main Planning Committee from 2003 – 2011 during which time he was concerned with the planning of the University of York’s Campus East, CYC’s West Offices and the early stages of both Hungate and the Terrys Redevelopment. He served as Sheriff in 2010 – 2011 and was appointed Honorary Alderman in 2011. During 2018/19, he will take office as the President of the Yorkshire Law Society and will serve as Under Sheriff.
Planning and development consultant Bill Woolley retired as City of York Council’s deputy chief executive and director of city and environmental services in 2012 having worked on a range of major projects in the city including the Millennium Bridge, Foss Islands Shopping centre, the Hungate regeneration and the restoration of West Offices in Station Rise.
Architect Dean Bartlett graduated from the University of Cambridge and won the best in class award for his final submission. Prior to his architectural education, he spent four years as a qualified Mason.
Dean has worked with The Manser Practice in York since 2014, gaining extensive experience across many sectors including healthcare, transport, and residential. He is passionate about conservation, social inclusion, and re-invention of existing building stock over replacement.
Architect Tim Hatton, worked at practices in Manchester and Newcastle upon Tyne before forming Carve Architecture in York in 2011. Tim has extensive experience in the residential sector, from masterplanning and housing developments, working with leading house builders through to bespoke residential projects, such as home extensions and new-build houses working for private clients. Tim is Co-President of the local branch of the RIBA York Architectural Association.
James is a Partner at Innovate Associates where he oversees the design team to create, develop and handover modern buildings for their clients, aiming to exceed their expectations by utilising Revit to visualise in virtual reality. Having lived and worked in London for many years, he relocated to York three years ago.
He has worked at a range of practices, on new build projects to refurbishments, schools and universities, offices, housing development to high-end residential, and gained an enthusiasm for working with timber for construction and finish. His passion is for architectural detailing and problem solving inspired by Italian architect Carlo Scarpa.
The first York Design Awards evening was held in 2007 at the Mansion House, moving to the Merchant Adventurers Hall in 2008. Subsequently the venue for the annual Awards Evening has been an award winning building from the previous year – York College, University of York`s Berrick Saul Building, York St. John`s De Grey Building, Yorkshire Museum, University of York`s Film, Theatre & Television Building, and for 2014, Nestle Product Technology Centre.
This has been an attractive and fascinating aspect of the awards and the generosity of the various organisations involved in allowing us to use these special buildings as venues for the Awards Evenings has always been greatly appreciated.
From the start, the organising committee has included both representatives from relevant organisations across the city and interested individuals. Representation on the committee currently includes City of York Council, York Guild of Building, York Civic Trust, York Professionals, York Archaeological Trust, York Architectural Association and York Consortium of Craftsmen & Conservationists.
A display of entries has been a feature of the Awards Evening reception and, in 2008, we worked with four students and their tutor from York St. John University who created the display as part of their design coursework, a rewarding experience on both sides.
Another educational opportunity arose in 2013, this time with York College, and has continued. A class of Building Construction students assessed the entries as a paper exercise, using the same criteria as our judges, to decide which they thought was best in each category.
Mindful of its core purpose, the York Design Awards also engages in the city with other relevant activities and initiatives: the University of York Festival of Ideas, and the RIBA ‘Love Architecture’ Festival in York 2012.
Sponsorship has been crucial to the continuation of the awards. Our intention has always been to keep the awards accessible to everyone – this means:
Grateful acknowledgement is, therefore, due to all our sponsors without which we simply could not make the York Design Awards the success they are today.
