Jewson has announced the winners of its 2016 Building Better Communities competition, awarding 28 projects from across the UK a share of the £250,000 prize fund.
The Eden-Rose Coppice Trust scooped the top prize – a £150,000 transformation using the Saint-Gobain ‘My Comfort’ building principles – while 27 projects each won a share of the £100,000 regional prize fund.
The competition was launched in March 2016, and saw more than 1,800 community projects nominated. With the help of employees and suppliers from across the UK, Jewson narrowed the number down to a shortlist of 59.
The shortlist was then put to a public vote and, following further judging, Jewson announced the winner of the main prize and the final regional winners, who will receive anything from £1,000 to £6,000 to spend on building materials.
The 28 winners were invited to an awards ceremony at the East Midlands Conference Centre in Nottingham, where property expert and TV presenter, Sarah Beeny, presented the prizes.
Sarah Beeny, a VELUX ambassador, commented: “It’s so important for members of a community to have places where they can come together and feel proud of.
“That’s why I’m honoured to support the Building Better Communities campaign from Jewson, which is focused on transforming small corners of people’s communities through local, sustainable building projects. The improvements we make now not only benefit people today but also communities in the future.”
David Fenton, marketing director at Jewson, commented: “A massive congratulations to all of the winning Building Better Communities projects! We received a huge number of entries and a record number of votes via Facebook so it’s a great achievement for the winners and we can’t wait to see the work take place.
“We recognise that there are community buildings across the UK in need of some care and attention, so we upped the prize for 2016 to ensure that we help turn these buildings into spaces that entire communities can enjoy.”
A number of suppliers have committed to supporting Building Better Communities 2016, including British Gypsum, Marshalls, VELUX, Polypipe and Tarmac.
