2011 RICS Conservation Award

Chipping Campden-based Architects, Reg Ellis & Associates has won a prestigious award at the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors West Midlands award ceremony held on 20th May at the Hilton Birmingham Metropole Hotel. The award recognised Reg Ellis & Associates conservation work at Ladyridge Farm on the Brockhampton Estate in Herefordshire.

The project involved transforming a group of farm buildings, which had fallen into disrepair as a demise of their use into work/live units using local materials where possible. For example, all the oak for the structural timbers and chestnut cladding was felled and milled on the estate and stone for repairs and new walls were salvaged from other buildings on the estate. Rainwater is used to irrigate the planting and to flush the WC’s and the earth’s heat is used to supply up to 70% of the energy needs. The judges were impressed with the construction materials and techniques used, conservation achievements and the project’s long-term prospects.

Tony Ives, Director at Reg Ellis & Associates commented ‘We are delighted that the hard work of the team and conservation expertise has been recognised by the Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors. The quality achieved has been largely down to the selection of a local contractor, I J Preece & Sons, a local family based company who employ a lot of their own tradesman working with indigenous materials and we are indebted to them. The landscape design was by renowned landscape design Tom Stuart-Smith. Repairs to the structure were overseen by Frank W Haywood & Associates and cost control was undertaken by quantity surveyors, Synergy Bare Leaning and Bare. The success of this project has been down to sheer hard work and the ability of the contractor, professional team and the client working closely together and pulling in the same direction’.

View project: Ladyridge farm, Brockhampton