gcp Chartered Architects have designed another award winning building in central Bristol. Ducrow Court, a development for Knightstone Housing Association, has been awarded a Silver Standard Building for Life. The development is in the St Paul's area of Bristol and just a few minutes walk from the popular and culturally vibrant Stokes Croft area of the city.
The Building for Life award ceremony took place in November 2010, and was hosted by designer and chair of Building for Life Wayne Hemingway MBE.
Fifty-five schemes were shortlisted for a Building for Life standard and an independent judging panel then selected outstanding schemes to receive a Building for Life award. Shortlisted developments varied from small self-build community schemes to large developer schemes. The standard of the shortlisted schemes was very high making 2010 "a vintage year for housing design" in the words of Wayne Hemingway.
The housing led mixed use development of the 69 new homes including 60 shared ownership properties and eight small scale studios / workspace offers affordable living and working within this sustainable area of Bristol.
The judging panel said "Knightstone takes the top prize for their willingness to take the risk and commit to helping change the face of St Paul's in Bristol. Ducrow Court offers really good quality housing at a very affordable price."
Building for Life is a partnership between several national agencies. It is now led by the Design Council with support from the Home Builders Federation and Design for Homes. The Building for Life reward developers that demonstrate a commitment to high design standards and sustainable development.
In addition to the Building for Life award Ducrow Court has received the Gold Award for 'Best Shared Ownership Development' in the 2010 What House? annual celebration. These awards were presented by comedian Jimmy Carr in November 2010 and are considered the Oscars of the new house building industry.