BUILDERS Skipton Properties says it is a 'privilege and an honour' to have been named a winner at an industry awards ceremony held in London.

The family run business based in Cross Hills, picked up the 'best medium volume new housing development' award for its development, The Rise at Harden, at the LABC (Local Authority Building Control) Building Excellence Awards held earlier this month at the Westminster Park Plaza Hotel.

Judges said the name of the development was a nod to its difficult topography - the site, formerly coal sheds, sloped very steeply upwards, posing a significant challenge when designing the houses. The latter part of the project took place during the coronavirus pandemic, which meant everyone having to adapt to new ways of working.

Lorna Stimpson, LABC chief executive said :“These new style awards reflect LABC’s new focus on skills, quality and competency and reflect the best in construction from a technical perspective.

"The Rise saw very effective communication, especially given that a sizeable portion of the work took place out during the pandemic and the decision to stop work entirely for several weeks during the first lockdown. The great rapport between the team and building control meant that close contact was maintained and they were able to quickly pivot to working more flexibly.”

Sarah Barraclough, managing director of Skipton Properties, said: “On behalf of the Skipton Properties family, it is a privilege and honour that the LABC announced ‘The Rise’ as a winner.

"Building communities is at the heart of what we do, from acquiring the land through to the carefully designed landscaping and this site in particular, with its difficult topography, presented a significant challenge for us so we’re honoured to have our work recognised in this way."

Around 750 leading construction industry figures, also including Skipton-based Candelisa, attended the awards ceremony recognising best practise, quality and standards in building.

It was the first awards since 2019 because of the coronavirus pandemic. LABC had revised the competition to focus more on professional skills and competence, dividing the awards into 'people' and 'places'.

A panel of industry experts judged a list of projects and teams from across England and Wales to showcase solutions to complex technical or construction issues, site constraints, technical innovation and the building control professionalism that leads to safe, sustainable and high quality construction projects.

Candelisa was highly commended for the best high volume new housing development for The Motor Works in Cononley.