The winners
The planning and placemaking work that picked up the top prizes at this week’s central London ceremony
Meridian One, the first phase of the Meridian Water urban regeneration project in north London, has been chosen as the most outstanding entry in the Planning Awards 2024.
The scheme picked up the editor’s award, which is given to the most highly rated of all the winning schemes.
Submitted by Enfield Council, Vistry, the Conservation Volunteers, Capital City College Group, and Stace, Meridian One is due to deliver 977 homes, with 50 per cent affordable housing, and 2,300 square metres of leisure, retail, employment and community spaces.
The judges described the scheme as “a comprehensive, well-rounded, project, which has put the community and strong social value above profits”.
Speaking at the awards ceremony, Planning editor Richard Garlick said the entry "exemplified so many of the qualities that projects will need to win back trust from local communities".
Meridian One had earlier also won the award for best housing scheme of 500 homes or more.
The regeneration of the Blackbird Leys estate in Oxford picked up the award for best housing scheme with fewer than 500 homes, as well as the prize for community-led placemaking.
The social housing scheme, which is a joint venture between Oxford City Council and Peabody, was submitted by Peabody and JTP. It is intended to deliver 294 affordable, low-energy homes, green spaces, a community centre co-designed with local residents and new shops. It was commended by the judges as “an excellent example of sensitive urban development’ brought forward in a way that gave the existing community a sense that the new place was “theirs and something they had helped create”.
Blackbird Leys was also highly commended in the planning for affordable housing category.
The local authority planning team of the year award, supported by the Planning Officers Society, was won by the London Borough of Haringey. Planning law firm of the year was won by BDB Pitmans, and planning consultancy of the year by Tibbalds.
The awards are also supported by the Planning Advisory Service.
The full list of winners and highly commended schemes is:
PLANNING CATEGORIES
PLACEMAKING CATEGORIES
THE JUDGES
Lucy Bird, Planning Director, Berkeley Homes
Rebecca Bowker, Urban Designer, Taylor Wimpey
Paul Brocklehurst, Chairman, Land, Planning, and Development Federation
Pan Chong, Team Leader, Planning, London Borough of Southwark
Rowan Cole, Founder, Coleface Engagement
Maria Dunn, Head of Development, Birmingham City Council
David Fennel, Chief Planning Officer, Leeds City Council
Tracey Lovejoy, senior associate solicitor, Irwin Mitchell
Duncan McCallum, Chair, Society For The Protection Of Ancient Buildings
Janice Morphet, Visiting Professor, UCL
Miles Price, Planning Director, British Land
Catriona Riddell, Director, Catriona Riddell & Associates
Stacey Robins, Head Of Planning And Environmental Services, Wealden District Council
Shelley Rouse, Principal Consultant, Planning Advisory Service
Matthew Sharp, Head of Planning, Bristol Airport
Sripriya Sudhakar, Head of Regeneration, London Borough of Tower Hamlets
Laura Webster, Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities
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