Winner.
Proctor and Matthews.
Proctor and Matthews Architects have now been announced as winners selected from five finalists after their mixed housing scheme impressed a judging panel comprising council officers, Mansfield Executive Mayor Andy Abrahams and Teresa Borsuk acting as the RIBA Architectural Adviser.
The submitted proposals seek to meet the Council’s key objectives and aspirations set out in the brief by:
- celebrating the rich history of Mansfield and the White Hart Street area
- conserving, reusing and enhancing the historic assets and industrial heritage of the site
- connecting the site with the wider town centre through a network of attractive spaces and routes
- creating a liveable and inclusive neighbourhood for both existing and future residents
- providing sustainable and healthy homes for older people and families as part of a warm and welcoming community
- greening the public realm and enabling the residents to live an active and healthy outdoors life on their doorstep
- maximising the potential of the site with simple and efficient structures that are skilfully arranged to form an inviting and attractive neighbourhood
- making the White Hart Street site an integral part of Mansfield town centre and an inspiring place to live, work and visit.
Executive Mayor of Mansfield Andy Abrahams said:
“The overall standard of entries to the competition was phenomenally high and this scheme from Proctor and Matthews stood out as particularly impressive in its quality, cost and in terms of what we as a council were looking to achieve.
The idea to work with RIBA has been a tremendous success resulting in Mansfield being exposed to some of the most talented architects in the UK resulting in the highest quality design for this transformative project.
We can't wait to take the next steps into making the impressions of this new housing into a reality for our tenants. We've had a glimpse of what the scheme will look like from initial artist impressions but there is still much work to do and a more detailed picture will emerge in the coming months. White Hart Street has been derelict for too long and has failed to attract private sector investment, so it has been crying out for a vision that will breathe new life into this important area of our town centre. We think we have found in this winning scheme a design that will respect the area’s heritage and provide affordable, energy efficient and future proofed homes that are fit for the 21st Century, and which people of all ages will feel proud to live in. This scheme is a significant part of our Town Centre Masterplan. Put simply, we want to see our town centre increasingly as a place where people want to live. This will increase footfall and consequently act as a catalyst for external investment.”
Teresa Borsuk, RIBA Architect Adviser, said:
“The panel was impressed by the quality, thought and attention to detail expressed in all the submissions. The many ideas presented provoked much discussion and debate, but evidently there can only be one winner. The winning entry was well considered, achieving a good number and mix of homes; a range of other uses; quality public realm and above all, vitality and spirit. The panel particularly enjoyed the careful crafting of the proposed masterplan with its interweaving and layering of the many references to the site’s former history. Mansfield District Council is now looking forward to further develop the proposals to ultimately transform White Hart Street regeneration area into a memorable place, with an identity that will help secure and retain its future.”
