Cambridge development wins Housing Design Award for being the most sustainable residential scheme in UK

This summer we’ve seen many examples of climate change bringing tropical downpours. This is the first scheme in Britain with a strategy to make sure those cloudbursts don’t soak through under your front door. It’s an exemplar of designing for climate change with a 360 degree vision, such as its clever ventilation strategies so homes won’t overheat, now a real issue for nearly all new-builds. If I were buying a new home and worrying about climate change and how that would affect my comfort in my home, I’d be confident Knights Park wouldn’t leave me sweltering at night.

Our quality standards have been created to award projects at both the design and post-construction stages of development. Given that Knights Park is already built and occupied, meaning their planning application came forward before much of the current environmental and climate legislation was in place, we were super impressed with the high standard and holistic design approach evident across the scheme. Knights Park delivers a new neighbourhood which will act as a benchmark for development for years to come. Without compromising on the design quality of the built environment, Knights Park successfully demonstrates what is possible when a scheme positively responds to the climate and ecological emergency, meeting the needs of both the existing and future local communities.

It's a great honour and a privilege to receive this award from such a prestigious array of judges. Working in collaboration with Pollard Thomas Edwards and Alison Brooks Architects, we have created a scheme with the highest standards in design and sustainability we are immensely proud of.  Delivering functional homes that have a reduced impact on the environment is something we are known for, and it is terrific that Knights Park has been recognised by this expert panel.

"Achieving this award would not have been possible without the dedication and hard work performed by the whole team over almost ten years. I would like to congratulate Pollard Thomas Edwards and Alison Brooks Architects for their hard work and commitment, which has resulted in an exemplar scheme for sustainable design. It takes an extraordinary number of businesses, stakeholders and individuals to deliver a scheme the size of Eddington, and we feel immensely proud to have been recognised for this work

Pollard Thomas Edwards and Alison Brooks Architects are delighted to have received this inaugural Housing Design award and respect this recognition by Design for Homes.

The whole project team, (including both architectural practices, the many consultants, the client and developer, Hill) have strived to ensure that the success of Knights Park is consistent and “thrutone”, from its fundamental ambitions of sustainable and zero carbon living, through its specific place making and green qualities, to the special and particular enjoyment of each of the homes. A conscientious and considered development where people will truly feel 'at home'.

This Housing Design Award is a wonderful acknowledgement of what can be achieved when a client group prioritises sustainability at every level and invests in architectural quality. We are delighted for the University of Cambridge, Hill, PTE, AECOM and our wider project design team who have all invested a huge amount of care and effort into the realising Knights Park. Collectively we’ve brought exemplary innovation and quality of life to this beautiful new neighbourhood where our housing designs have integrated home working - long before Covid was governing the headlines.