Retail and Leisure Architect of the Year
We are thrilled to announce our 'Retail and Leisure Architect of the Year' win at this year's Building Design Architect of the Year Awards.
This is the fourth time FaulknerBrowns has won the title, which recognises all-round design excellence and fitness for purpose over a body of retail and leisure work.
This year, the community projects we presented for judging highlight the need to provide public leisure facilities that are more sustainable, more inclusive and accessible to all.
Britannia Leisure Centre, a project recently completed in Hackney, provides accessible facilities and inclusive programming, in a stacked building overlooking Shoreditch Park. By celebrating the activities within, Britannia has increased local participation in fitness, swimming and sports by more than 160%.
Kingston Community Centre received planning permission earlier this year, and will create a new town centre destination by providing new leisure facilities, play areas and a public café alongside the existing Grade II listed Kingston Library and Museum. The centre includes swimming pools, a gym and sports hall, rooftop pitches and flexible community space.
Finally, our community project in Woolwich will combine extensive new health and leisure facilities with the refurbishment of an existing community theatre and arts venue, in Woolwich town centre. The project is part of a wider masterplan that will provide more than 400 new homes.
As high streets and town centres diversify beyond retail-only models, these projects show the value of combining leisure facilities with other community uses. From culture and theatre to schools and homes, incorporating leisure into mixed-use projects can engage more people with the physical and mental benefits of sport and movement.
Congratulations to everyone involved in these projects.
