Buildings Introduction by Jim Greaves Chair of Buildings Judges

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While wood has long been employed for its aesthetic qualities, increasingly it is its low embodied carbon and carbon store characteristics that make it a favoured material choice within our built environment. The range of buildings in which timber is used continues to grow, and this can be seen in our shortlist. It is a testament to an evolving industry that is embracing timber.

From over 200 entries, our shortlist showcases the very best of construction using wood in the UK. The quality this year was very high: to make it onto the shortlist is an impressive achievement in and of itself. Each of these projects is at the forefront of design, craftsmanship and innovation - amongst any building in the UK,  not just those that use timber.

Timber can help us reach the highest contemporary building standards. So, it is unsurprising that wood is being more widely embraced, and that timber buildings are being more widely recognised. For over 30 years, the Wood Awards have promoted inspiring timber design - as evidenced with last year’s Wood Awards Gold Winner, Magdalene College Library.

For 2022 we have created a new Building category: Restoration and Reuse. We decided to add this after viewing projects such as the Threshing Barn and the Water Tower.

These buildings work with what is already there, reducing carbon footprints by avoiding unnecessary demolition. They recognise that the lowest embodied carbon building is the one that already exists. Both buildings seamlessly and effortlessly weave old and new together. While the first restores a barn to its former glory, the latter rediscovers a piece of our industrial heritage.

The Restoration and Reuse category demonstrates the ways timber can help enhance existing buildings. But this is not the only way timber is being used in this year’s Wood Awards. Every shortlisted entry is an example of excellence.

Whether you look to the Commercial category, where the ABBA Arena and UK Hardwoods Storage Centre show timber being embraced as a construction material in its own right, or to our Educational or Private sector entries, where timber is building the homes and learning spaces of tomorrow, you will see that wood is increasingly being used as the construction material of choice.

I would like to thank my fellow judges for contributing their time and expertise to this process, including visiting all twenty shortlisted projects. It is the fact that so much time and commitment is put into visiting and assessing these projects that makes these awards a true measure of the best of wood design for 2022.

Finally, I would like to congratulate our winners. They represent the best of contemporary wood architecture. With this in mind, I very much look forward to seeing what next year has to offer..