This year’s submissions to the Wood Awards are testament to the continued strength of timber architecture and engineering in the UK. We have travelled as far afield as the Outer Hebrides and the to the valleys of Somerset, and have crossed the country experiencing incredible homes, schools, workplaces, and public venues; each displaying a different aspect of the use of wood.
Some of the projects we have seen really advance the applications of timber to provide solutions to specific problems. This includes WorkStack, which breaks the mould of industrial design with its structurally efficient, low carbon CLT alternative to sprawling low-rise developments, and Uist House which progresses modular construction by making high-value use of UK timber to create a quality home in a wild and distant location.
Several of the projects are defined by their innovative and elegant timber roof structures. Sitting atop of a hidden basement, the Rhodes House Garden Pavilion displays a boldly expressive lattice structure which has been carefully crafted from LVL and ply. Both HIAVEN and Niwa House have used composite structures that cleverly maximise the performance and aesthetic of mass timber beams to create beautiful homes.
Advances in sustainability can be seen in both the Haileybury SciTech and Liberty Woodland School which have created low carbon learning environments, using timber to integrate sensitively with their sites. On a small scale, the Drying Shed Sauna, built using repurposed and local timbers, incorporates thoughtful, nature-friendly details to sit in harmony with its woodland surroundings.
Arguably the major theme this year is the role timber is playing in extending, enhancing and retaining existing buildings. This is exemplified in our Gold Winner, the Brighton Corn Exchange & Studio Theatre; a tour of force of engineering achievement combined with meticulous repair and a sympathetic architectural vision which have come together to save a heritage structure and create a public venue fit for the future. In both Clare College and Pembroke Mill Lane the designers have added oak glum additions that cleverly stitch together existing educational spaces and unlock surprising new ones. A simple sweet chestnut-clad wing provides a sensitive extension to Old School House, while Bough Terrace shows a domestic interior totally transformed with a new staircase in a beautifully restored interior.
As always, I would like to thank my fellow judges for their continued commitment to the Wood Awards. The effort and time invested in visiting and evaluating all eighteen shortlisted projects, in person, is what gives these awards their integrity.
I would also like to congratulate every one of the Wood Awards 2024 winners, highly commended projects, and shortlisted projects. Each of those selected sits at the forefront of contemporary timber architecture. The talent and innovation on display is inspiring and I look forward to seeing what the future holds.
JIM GREAVES (CHAIR OF BUILDINGS PANEL)
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