This year’s Brick Awards continues the organisers’ key focus on sustainability, with the Sustainability Award again featuring, following its introduction in 2022. The awards, which are organised by the Brick Development Association will be held at a ceremony at the Royal Lancaster Hotel, London on 8 November, and celebrate the best examples of clay brick in the built environment.
The Sustainability Award reflects the serious intentions of British brick manufacturers to create a greener and more eco-friendly future and highlights the positive and pro-active sustainable initiatives which are now taking place within the industry. The award, which is sponsored by leading UK independent brickmaker Michelmersh, will be judged by a specialist panel.
The award is open to low or zero carbon buildings or built projects in the UK, which are wholly or mainly built of clay brick, and which highlight innovative capabilities and achievements across the entire project, including: design, build (including fabrication, assembly or construction); operation of the building, and impact on the local community or environment. Projects must have been completed within the last two years.
Sustainable shortlist
The Sustainability Award shortlist is notable for its geographical spread, from London and the south to the midlands, the north and Scotland. The shortlisted projects are: Ceangal House, Glasgow; Dovehouse Court Almshouses, Cambridge; Globe Point, Leeds; Priddys Hard Phase 2, Gosport; Red Kite View, Leeds; Repton Gardens, London; and Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings.
All these projects celebrate the timeless elegance and sustainable strength of clay bricks in the world of construction. Clay bricks stand out as a symbol of enduring strength and timeless elegance. As illustrated by this year’s awards shortlist, the Brick Development Association proudly advocates the use of clay bricks in construction because their array of benefits make them an ideal choice for any project.
Clay bricks offer exceptional structural integrity, providing a robust foundation for buildings and ensuring durability over time. Their thermal mass properties regulate indoor temperature, reducing energy consumption and contributing to a more sustainable environment. Moreover, clay bricks are much lighter than concrete bricks, which means that they can be transported in a more environmentally friendly way, saving on fuel and road use and therefore reducing their overall carbon footprint. They also tend to be made locally, unlike concrete bricks, a factor that helps strengthen the local economy. This makes them truly sustainable on so many levels.
Beyond functionality, clay bricks bring strong aesthetic appeal to architectural designs with their natural colour variations and textures. This combination of strength and beauty has made clay bricks a favourite among architects, developers, and homeowners alike. From their durability and design versatility to their eco-friendly attributes, clay bricks continue to pave the way to a sustainable as well as visually captivating built environment.
There’s something incredibly appealing about ‘good old British brick.’ With its solidity, longevity, sustainability, beauty and familiarity – not to mention its wide regional colour variations – there’s so much to attract self-builders and renovators alike. When it comes to building or improving your home, whether a new build, an extension or a conservation project, nothing can ever beat British brick. At the same time, clay bricks come in a wonderful variety of colours and textures – and they become more beautiful as they age, unlike concrete bricks which fade, preventing architects and builders creating truly memorable buildings.
If the economic case for clay bricks is persuasive, so too is the sustainability and ecological argument. Of all building and housing materials, bricks are one of the most environmentally friendly. All major British brick manufacturers take their sustainability responsibilities extremely seriously, recycling energy and waste wherever possible and supporting the circular economy.
It is important to celebrate best practice in the use of brick in the built environment, and to emphasise how investment in production processes currently being developed the UK’s clay brick industry, such as renewable energy, carbon capture, biomass and hydrogen fuelling, will see further carbon reductions in clay brick production in the future.
The Brick Awards ceremony will take place on November 8 at the Royal Lancaster Hotel in London. It will be hosted by popular TV personality and architect George Clarke, best known for his work on the Channel 4 programmes The Home Show, The Restoration Man, George Clarke’s Old House New Home, and George Clarke’s Amazing Spaces.
For more information on the awards, please call 020 7323 7034 or visit the Brick Development Association website, (www.brick.org.uk). To find out more about the awards night and how you can buy tickets, email georgespreckley(Replace this parenthesis with the @ sign)brick.org.uk
Article supplied by the BDA