The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) has announced the shortlist for the Reinvention Award 2024

The annual award recognises achievement in the creative reuse of buildings to improve their environmental, social, or economic sustainability. It aims to shine a light on “retrofitting”, increasing the longevity and energy efficiency of existing buildings, and reducing the need for demolition and new construction.

This year’s shortlist acknowledges four projects that revitalise the areas and communities around them, each improving the places we live and work while creating a new, ambitious standard in how we approach reuse in architecture.

The shortlisted projects are:

 

• Croft 3 (RIAS) by fardaa

A ruined rural croft on the Isle of Mull has been modestly yet expertly converted, expanding a busy local restaurant and providing a valuable community space, while meeting the stringent regulations of a National Scenic Area.

• Park Hill Phase 2 by Mikhail Riches

The second phase of an ongoing regeneration of Europe’s largest listed structure which sits on a prominent hillside overlooking Sheffield City Centre. Internal spaces are modernised through open plan designs and the addition of balconies, while thermal imaging has allowed sustainability experts to  improve energy efficiency.

• Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings by Feilden Clegg Bradley Studios

A full refurbishment of a hugely important historic structure has turned the world’s first iron-frame building, nicknamed the ‘grandparent of skyscrapers’ into a new leisure destination with a visitor centre and cafe that embraces its industrial heritage.

• The Parcels Building by Grafton Architects

An outdated and unsuitable 1957 office and retail building has been transformed into a vibrant, sustainable centre for modern workspace and retail. The new façade brings depth and rhythm whilst cleverly negotiating the contrasting scale and character of Oxford Street and Duke Street.

Jury Chair and Director of Dow Jones, Biba Dow, said:

“Each of the shortlisted projects presents an exceptional approach to adapting an existing building. Our shortlist of four is diverse, with a commercial office building in central London, a Grade I-listed mill in Shropshire that is the earliest iron-framed building in the world, the redevelopment of Park Hill (Phase 2) housing in Sheffield which is Europe’s largest listed structure, and a restaurant in a small ruined byre on the Isle of Mull. 

Collectively and separately, these projects show us how, with architectural imagination and care, buildings can be adapted to respond to new uses with re-imagined spaces and honed architectural character.”

RIBA President, Muyiwa Oki, said:

“The importance of retrofitting and adaptive re-use cannot be overstated. Not least because most buildings that we will inhabit in the future have already been built. As architects, we are faced with the task of creatively responding to this issue, while balancing the needs of the local community and environment.

The four shortlisted projects for this year’s Reinvention Award are all inspiring examples of how this can be achieved, with each carefully considering the context of their area, community and environmental needs. Diverse in their approach to reuse, these projects now set a benchmark for future retrofit endeavors.”

The Reinvention Award 2024 jury comprised: Director of Dow Jones, Biba Dow (Chair); Partner at van Heyningen and Haward Architects, James McGosh; and Architectural and Urban Historian at the University of Warwick, Otto Saumarez Smith.