Awards for county borough’s finest new buildings

The stunning transformation of the former Coity Primary School site into seven luxury homes has been recognised at Bridgend County Borough Council’s thirteenth annual Local Authority Building Control (LABC) Building Excellence Awards.

The development by Scimitar Homes Limited picked up the awards for ‘Best Small New Housing Development’ and the ‘Special Planning Award’ at the event held in the council’s Civic Offices. Scimitar Homes Limited were praised for the way that their homes are beautifully designed, energy efficient, and complement the surrounding area.

Another notable new building to win awards was Linc Cymru’s Extra Care development in Ynysawdre. The scheme, which allows older people to live as independently as possible, was named ‘Best Public Service Building’. The building’s constructors Jehu Project Services also won a second award for the scheme as site manager Glyn Rees picked up the accolade for ‘Best LABC Construction Professional of the Year’.

The exceptional refurbishment of the Porthcawl Harbour Kiosk by Henstaff Construction Ltd made it a clear winner in the ‘Best Small Commercial Building’ category. The refurbishment has maintained the authentic character of the original building, and is fully accessible for disabled users. The kiosk will open to the public later this spring.

Also among the winners was the new Pencoed Primary School, which was named as the ‘Best Educational Building’. Contractors BAM Construction Limited gave full consideration to fire safety, conservation of fuel power and accessibility in a complex building, delivering a state-of-the-art school that is fit for the 21st Century.

The LABC Building Excellence Awards are about celebrating excellence from the drawing board to the site, recognising the workmanship and technical innovation that goes into a high quality building. All of these award-winning schemes are testimony to what can be achieved when everyone works in harmony on a project, creating buildings that are sustainable, safe, innovative and in line with building regulations.

The awards are organised by the council’s building control team which carries out 7,000 inspections every year, from checking the foundations of a new house to the steel structures of an industrial project. All of the winners can feel extremely proud of their awards and I would like to congratulate them all on their success.

Councillor Richard Young, Bridgend County Borough Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities

Each of the award winners will now compete against others from across the region in the South Wales LABC Awards which will be held in April before hopefully proceeding to the national awards later in the year.

Bridgend County Borough Council’s LABC Building Excellence Awards 2019 were sponsored by Bam Construction, Scimitar Homes, Henstaff Construction Ltd, A.C.D skips Ltd, Morganstone Ltd, The Jehu Group, Llanmoor Homes, GreenBuild Consult and Aico Ltd.

Here is a full list of the winners in the Bridgend County Borough awards:

Best change of use of an existing building or conversion: Change of use from domestic dwelling to residential care home at Cildaudy Farm in Coytrahen by T Adams and Sons Building Contractors.

Best new small housing development and special planning award: Seven new houses at ‘The Paddocks’ on the site of the former Coity Primary School. Built by Scimitar Homes Limited.

Best new high volume housing development: A development of 99 new homes in the Parc Derwen estate by Llanmoor Homes Ltd.

Best new social housing development: On land at Parc Farm in Coity, 24 new properties have been constructed to a high standard by Morganstone Ltd on behalf of the Wales and West Housing Association.

Best public service building: The Extra Care development in Ynysawdre, built by JEHU Prjoect Services for Linc Cymru.

Best educational building: The new Pencoed Primary School, built by BAM Construction Ltd.

Best small commercial building: An outdated café has been redeveloped into the Porthcawl Harbour Kiosk, which is due to open on the waterfront later in the spring. Built by Henstaff Construction Ltd.

Best customer LABC partnership with a local authority building control team: Various projects undertaken by Ewenny Home Improvements. They continue to impress customers with their attention to detail.

Best LABC construction professional of the year: Glyn Rees, the site manager for JEHU Project Services on the Extra Care development in Ynysawdre. Glyn has been in the industry for over 40 years, and has the admiration and respect of all his peers.