Blencow Hall wins RICS NW property awards
THE restoration of Blencow Hall, a fortified manor house in Penrith has been named the top North West building project at the property sector’s annual awards.
It was crowned Project of The Year by judges at the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors’ 2010 awards.
RICS judges described the project as transforming a ruin to a unique tourist destination, bringing new life and a sustainable future to an historic building, which now offers high quality holiday accommodation and employment for local people.
Andrew Kellaway, chairman of the regional judging panel and senior partner with chartered quantity surveyors Todd & Ledson, said: “Blencow Hall is an outstanding example of the talent and originality which the North West property sector has to showcase. It fulfilled not only the criteria for the Building Conservation category, it also met and exceeded all the other awards we offer.”
Eight other projects were awarded prizes at the awards evening held at The Monastery in Gorton, which was last year’s overall winner.
Widely regarded as the region’s property ‘Oscars’, the awards recognise and celebrate inspirational initiatives and developments in land, property, construction and the environment.
The categories included; building conservation, commercial, community benefit, design and innovation, regeneration, residential, sustainability and tourism and leisure.
Mr Kellaway added: “The standard of entries this year has been exceptionally high, with nominations ranging from small-scale schemes, through to multi-million pound developments. So the judging process has been incredibly tough.”
The winners of the eight individual RICS category awards were:
Building Conservation – Blencow Hall, Penrith, Cumbria
Regeneration – Covered Market Hall, Stockport
Sustainability – Chadderton Wellbeing Centre, Oldham
Community benefit – Gorton Educational Village, Manchester
Commercial property – Root Hill Estate Yard, Clitheroe
Design and innovation – New Site Entrance at BAE Systems, Balderstone
Residential development – Belong Wigan, Wigan
Tourism and leisure – the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel, Chester
