Britain's best buildings of the year revealed: London's Cheesegrater named among RIBA's 2018 National Awards winners

Large-scale housing schemes and sustainability projects dominate this year's eclectic list of outstanding architecture.
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Jess Denham20 June 2018

London’s Leadenhall Building, also known as the Cheesegrater, has been named one of the UK’s best new buildings in this year’s RIBA National Awards.

The prestigious prizes celebrate architectural highlights from across the country, with the winners ranging in scale from major cultural buildings like Tate St Ives and the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire to under-the-radar gems like Lochside House, an eco-friendly home hidden in the West Highlands.

The RIBA awards, now in their 52nd year, showcase the latest design trends. Sustainability is a big one for 2018, with materials being sensitively chosen to complement their natural surroundings, such as for the new visitor centre and viewing platform at Walthamstow Wetlands.

Characterful, historic buildings are being regenerated and reused rather than demolished. The Department Store in Brixton, a former dilapidated department store from 1906 that has been renovated to provide work and social spaces for small businesses, is an excellent example.

Knox Bhavan Studio, the smart restoration of a former Peckham stationery shop into an office for an architecture firm, is another, as is the elegant renovation of an Art Deco office at 25 Savile Row in Mayfair.

While many of the winners are found in London, other nationwide projects to have breathed new life into local communities include Storyhouse in Chester, a library by day and theatre by night, and Storey’s Field Community Centre and Nursery in Cambridge.

In Liverpool, the rundown Royal Court has been stripped back to its bones and given a makeover that retains its original, hardworking spirit. The new foyer, studio theatre and bar were all created on a modest budget.

Ben Derbyshire, RIBA president, was thrilled to see large-scale housing schemes on the winners list, highlighting the benefits of authority-led regeneration.

Notable successes include the redevelopment of Kings Crescent Estate in Hackney, where the council has upgraded existing housing with large balconies and added winter gardens, courtyards and a street designed specifically for children to play in.

The refurbishment of three Grade II-listed cast-iron Gasholders is a highlight of Kings Cross’s ongoing renewal, while Chadwick Hall in Roehampton offers student accommodation cleverly built between a listed building and modernist flats on a rock-bottom budget.

“Projects such as these show how it is possible for enlightened local authorities and developers to create the well-designed, desirable and sustainable homes that communities so desperately need,” said Derbyshire.

Scroll through the gallery above to see all the winning buildings.