Award Winner! The Island, Huntington

In March of this year, we were thrilled to announce that our proposal for a The Island, a York based children’s charity, had received international recognition for its Stage 3 design. Having competed in our first ever dragon boat race this week to raise funds in support of The Island’s fantastic work, we wanted to further celebrate our successes together. Project lead and design director Mark Andrews, who attended the official award ceremony in Milan, has provided a design commentary for the winning scheme:

🏅 The Architectural Review : Future Projects Awards (Civic & Community category)
✅ Planning permission granted

The project is designed to provide a hub for vulnerable children ages 8-18 across York to access necessary support services, as a purpose-built facility nestled within a portion of York’s green belt. The vision for the project and building is to greatly expand and enhance the offer The Island can make to York’s young people. At the heart of the building lies a central recreation area for the young people, from which there can be accessed a public café area, music and performing arts space, a health and beauty salon and sports and fitness facilities.

The proposed design complements its rural siting through use of a natural, timber-based material palette, boasting both high energy performance and low embodied carbon. Cross laminated timber panels and cork cladding are proposed for the main structure, whilst a mix of low-pitched or green roofs allow the building form to sit sensitively within its context. Interior spaces are bright and designed for wellbeing, opening onto beautifully landscaped play areas, growing area and meadow.

Huge congratulations also to our clients, The Island York. As a practice we are honoured to contribute towards their fantastic work supporting young people in our local community. The award, which recognises projects for their positive future contribution to communities, is a testament to the charity’s long-term vision and impact.

To view winners in all 13 categories see here: https://futureprojects.architectural-review.com/2025/en/page/2025-winners

Thank you to all of our project partners:

The Island York | O'Neill Associates Town Planning | Hoare Lea | Dudleys Consulting Engineers | Aspect 4 Limited | SCP Transport

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