Design Award and Access Award winners
online slideshow (opens in new window)

Access Award brochure (pdf: 546kb)

Awards background info

Welsh Civic Societies Local Design Awards
Cadw Access Award

Award winners announced

Nominated by Llanelli and District Civic Society, Carmarthenshire County Council won an award for this enveloping scheme on a run-down interwar estate

The Local Design Awards are very different to conventional architectural and environmental award schemes. The aim of the Local Design Awards is to encourage the recognition and celebration of good design in communities throughout Wales – not necessarily “outstanding” work, but design that is responsive to context in a way that deserves to be emulated. We asked Welsh civic societies to identify development and conservation projects that responded successful to a local sense of place and which met the needs of their intended users. It was to be local lay judgement that counted, not that of outside experts and professional leaders.
   The awards celebrate good local design evaluated by local people. Most types and scales of project could be nominated; entries could include new buildings as well as projects that respect the character of older properties. A conservation scheme might involve major alterations or careful renovation of detail. Projects should respond to local context and character and might display innovative or contemporary design solutions. Projects should respond to user needs and where relevant contribute to a sustainable, enjoyable, safe and secure environment. Projects should have been completed since September 2000.
   Societies could consider entering projects that have achieved recognition through their own award schemes. Nominations were reviewed by a panel drawn from the Trust board, including members elected by civic societies. All schemes that in the opinion of the panel successfully responded to the criteria will receive awards.
   An important context for the scheme is the Welsh Assembly Government’s 2003 Technical Advice Note on Design (TAN 12). An important plank in the broader and very ambitious initiative that has seen the launch of the Design Commission for Wales, the advice note guides both developers and planning authorities. It is important that civic societies, which are pro-active in the causes of sound planning, good design, and social and physical sustainability, recognise its importance. Accordingly, we asked societies to justify their selections against criteria derived from the advice note.
   We asked societies to set out their reasons for nomination in their own words, with reference to the award criteria. We were not expecting technical language, but a straightforward explanation of what appealed about a particular project. The societies who took part deserve congratulations for the effort taken in assembling nominations and providing appropriate illustrations – not always an easy task in itself. Generally the Trust’s panel felt that a considered approach had been taken to the selection of projects. Issues of context, functional suitability, design and construction quality were considered and clearly addressed.
In this presentation, the comments on each of the successful schemes are based on the judgements of the nominating society.

The Cadw Access Award is designed to identify schemes which tackle the problem of access to historic buildings and sites in an imaginative way, following the principles in Cadw's guide, Overcoming the Barriers. This year, a Highly Commended certificate was presented to Castell Henllys, a hill fort within the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park where the Iron Age way of life is being carefully reconstructed. Award brochure (pdf: 546kb)

21 March 2007