St Mary’s Walthamstow, and a new-build courtyard house called Catching Sun, also in Walthamstow, were both given The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) London Awards yesterday, reports Marco Marcelline

St Mary’s Walthamstow, Credit: Tim Crocker

A disused garage-turned-home and a Walthamstow church have both won a leading architect award.

St Mary’s Walthamstow, and a new-build courtyard house called Catching Sun, also in Walthamstow, were both given The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) London Awards yesterday (13th May).

Judges praised St Mary’s “triumph” of a renovation effort. In awarding Matthew Lloyd Architects, the jury said they found its new building extension, which contains the parish office and an exhibition space, “warm, bright, uplifting and full of life”.

The jury added: “The conservation works and new enhancements successfully extend the life of St Mary’s Walthamstow and offer a new hub for the whole community. That they have been executed with such subtlety and control is a tribute to the architects’ skill.”

Meanwhile, the transformation of a disused Walthamstow garage into a low energy home designed to capture the sun at all times of the day and year, was also given the RIBA London Award.

Catching Sun by StudioShaw, Credit: James Brittain

Described by developer StudioShaw as “a series of boxes connected by glazed screens”, judges were particularly impressed by how the boxes were “individually manipulated to angle up to reach for the sky and claim daylight”.

The 100-square-metre house is all on one level except for one room on the first floor. This upper floor provides an office which is reached via an alternating-tread climbing stair.

The reinvention of the former Royal London Hospital, the restoration of Westminster’s Elizabeth Tower, and an almshouse designed to reduce social isolation for older generations, are also among the 38 winners of the RIBA London Awards 2025.

Presented since 1966, the RIBA Awards are seen as amongst the most prestigious architectural recognitions in the country.

Tower Hamlets Town Hall was named as winner of RIBA London Building of the Year Award. The jury praised the project as a “tour de force of reinvention, combining a sensitivity to the existing building’s story with a sharpness of contemporary detailing.” They praised the approach as both “sensitive and brave, creating a modern, civic home for council administration, local services and democracy.”

Speaking at this year’s award ceremony in Tower Hamlets Town Hall, RIBA London director John Nahar, said: “Congratulations to all our RIBA London Award winners. Spanning every corner of the capital, this year’s selection is a breathtaking display of variety, creativity, and purpose.

“These projects tackle some of the most pressing challenges we face today – from affordable housing and social isolation to the environment and the need for retrofit and reuse. It’s inspiring to see such a wide range of innovative and considered projects – a testament to the strength and ingenuity of architects in the region.”

Speaking on all the UK Award winners, RIBA President, Muyiwa Oki, said: “This year’s winners exemplify architecture’s power to transform – turning spaces into places of connection, creativity, and care.

“Spanning the length of the UK and diverse in form and function, our 2025 winners show a deep sensitivity to place and a strong coherence of thought between all teams involved. Individually these projects inspire and uplift, but collectively, they remind us that architects do far more than design buildings, they shape the way we live, work and connect.”

RIBA London Award winners will now be considered for a highly coveted RIBA National Award, which will be announced on 10th July.

Last year, developer GS8’s “exemplar” carbon-negative Walthamstow housing scheme The Arbour won a RIBA National Award.

At the time, RIBA’s judges said: “With their exemplar ten-house, carbon-negative development on a former industrial site, Boehm Lynas and GS8 prove homes made from ‘waste’ and bio-based materials can be beautiful, and win.”

As RIBA notes, the project was sustainable from the get-go, with site operatives working on the construction required to sign up to a zero-waste charter that meant they had to use reusable drinks bottles, lunch boxes and bags. Meanwhile, early installation of solar panels meant that 60% of the site’s energy demands were satisfied.

No news is bad news

Independent news outlets like ours – reporting for the community without rich backers – are under threat of closure, turning British towns into news deserts.

The audiences they serve know less, understand less, and can do less.

If our coverage has helped you understand our community a little bit better, please consider supporting us with a monthly, yearly or one-off donation.

Choose the news. Don’t lose the news.

Monthly direct debit

Annual direct debit

£5 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else, £10 per month supporters get a digital copy of each month’s paper before anyone else and a print copy posted to them each month. £50 annual supporters get a digital copy of each month's paper before anyone else.