Hackney Design Awards

The official logo for the Hackney Design Awards 2022

Launch of Hackney Design Awards 2022

The nominations for the 2022 Hackney Design Awards are now open. The Awards are a celebration of great architecture and design in new developments built in Hackney.

Since the first Design Awards held in 2004, over 400 nominations have been made, 148 schemes shortlisted, of which 88 have been recognised as best in class Award winners or have received commendations or special mentions.

Philip Glanville, the Mayor of Hackney is committed to ensuring that the Council is focussed on the delivery of quality new development in the borough. The Council itself must lead by example when it commissions new buildings, seeking out the best Architects and laying down a clear challenge and expectation that all developers in Hackney follow the same approach.

The Mayor said:

“We set up the Hackney Design Awards in 2004 to celebrate the rich variety of design and architecture in the borough, from small scale projects to much larger developments in the public and private sectors.

At the Council, we’re delighted to support and showcase great design which contributes to and improves the fabric of our borough, helps to tackle the climate emergency, and makes a real difference to people’s lives. The awards are a testament to what can be achieved when we work together with visionary architects, developers and local residents.”

The Mayor has also set an ambitious objective for the Council to become a net zero Council by 2040. To promote this the 2022 Design Awards will have a special award category that puts net zero and sustainability at the heart of this year’s Design Awards. 

The Climate Change & Sustainability Award will showcase innovative, low carbon and exemplar design that demonstrates a direct contribution to Hackney’s climate emergency pledge. 

In addition to the special Climate Change & Sustainability Award we are asking each nomination to detail their approach to achieve ‘climate resilient’ design and address the following question : what climate change and sustainability considerations were taken in the design process and how do these support the borough’s commitments to deliver a net zero carbon Hackney by 2040?

The Hackney Design Awards offer a unique opportunity to bring together local communities and built environment professionals in order to increase our understanding and appreciation of how quality building, architecture and design can make a real difference to where we live, work and play.

Who can nominate?

The Hackney Design Awards are open to all to nominate any project they feel represents good quality architecture and design in any new development of any size in Hackney.

Previous nominations have been made by everyone involved with new development, from architects recognising their peers’ excellent designs to residents who live in a new development, employees recognising great workplaces, school pupils who love their schools or by residents or visitors who are simply inspired by the look of a building or a place.

What can be nominated?

The new building or scheme that you want to nominate must:

• be in the borough of Hackney
• have been completed no earlier than 30 September 2020 and be fully functioning by the closing date of nominations on 26 September 2022

You can nominate all types of public and private development, including new buildings, extensions, alterations, refurbishments, as well as public realm and landscaping schemes.

This year, two special categories have been added:

• Climate Change & Sustainability Award – innovative projects delivering exemplar climate resilient solutions which actively support Hackney’s pledge to tackle the climate emergency and achieve a net zero carbon Hackney by 2040
• Heritage & Restoration Award – sensitive and sympathetic restorations, buildings or extensions within a heritage setting that respect and celebrate the historic environment and add to local distinctiveness

What needs to be considered when making a nomination?

The Design Awards receive a varied range of nominations and there is no limit to the number of nominations you can make for different buildings or schemes.The following criteria should be applied when making your nomination:

• quality – it is of the highest quality in terms of its design, materials used or construction, and is an exemplar for its end use
• contextual response – makes a positive contribution to its location and local context, including the historic environment
• innovation – is an original response to design, construction or environmental constraints, or uses pioneering building materials or techniques including renewable energy production
• climate resilience – actively seeks to reduce their carbon footprint by considering both embodied and operational carbon emissions 

Nominate

You can enter your nomination by completing the nomination form below and emailing it to designawards@hackney.gov.uk. In your email, also attach photos of the project (images & drawings in context). To complete the form, first save a copy and then edit.

Feel free to use a file sharing website such as Wetransfer for larger transfers (over 25mb). Ensure these images are standalone, at least 300dpi and that we would have permission to publish these images, from the owner of the image.

Complete a nomination form

The closing date for nominations is 26 September 2022.

What happens after you make a nomination?

• we will contact you to confirm receipt of the nomination
• we will log the details of the nomination and undertake further investigation to gather as much information as possible to help with the judging process
• the client, the architect and the contractor, who are generally the awards recipients, will be notified of the nomination and, if shortlisted, notified accordingly to arrange a site visit, subject to any restrictions at the time

People’s Choice Award

The People’s Choice Award has been running since 2010, it offers residents the opportunity to vote for their favourite from a list of nominations.

All shortlisted entries for the awards will appear on the website in September 2022, along with details of how to vote.

Based on the votes received, the winner of the People’s Choice Award will be announced alongside the main awards.

Programme for 2022