Shankill Shared Women’s Centre scoops award at RICS UK Awards Grand Final
The UK’s most inspirational recent building projects went head-to-head at the RICS Awards Grand Ceremony in London last night where the Shankill Shared Women’s Centre won Community Benefit Project of the Year.
Opened in June 2024, Shankill Shared Women’s Centre is a multi-million pound purpose-built facility for women and families from all communities in North and West Belfast.
It claimed the prestigious category ahead of major schemes from across the UK, from Liverpool to London, Nottingham, Plymouth and Gateshead.
Other winners on the night included the Natural History Museum in London, the Stephenson Building at Newcastle University, the prestigious Welcome building in Bristol, and the Thames Tideway Tunnel in London.
Spanning 3,250m² across three floors, Shankill Shared Women’s Centre includes a multi-purpose hall, nursery, education rooms, youth units, health facilities, and a café.
Funded through the EU PEACE IV Programme, the centre promotes social cohesion and offers services focused on education, wellbeing, and youth empowerment. Designed by TODD Architects and project managed by W H Stephens, it provides a welcoming, safe, and inclusive environment. Since its 2024 completion, it has become a hub for personal development, community connection, and growth.
The RICS UK Awards showcase the most inspirational initiatives and developments in land, real estate, construction and infrastructure, recognising outstanding achievement, teamwork and companies.
Commenting on Shankill Shared Women’s Centre the judges said: “In 1987, eight inspired women felt that they had missed out on their education due to the troubles and formed this organisation to provide facilities to help women ‘’from cradle to grave’.
“This new centre is the culmination of over 35 years of determination and hard work, now providing a full range of activities for women of all ages, including a nursery for children of pre-school age, educational and health activities – particularly strong for teenagers – and good spaces for outside organisations to rent.
“This outstanding project was borne out of the community with individuals from that community involved in all stages of the development and is now serving women from all sectors of the locality of Belfast. This new centre is the culmination of 35 years of determination and hard work, now providing a sustainable community service to an area where there is a long-standing need for such services.”
The prestigious annual event was held at the Hilton Park Lane, London on Thursday 16th October.
Alongside project categories, the winners of the special category awards for infrastructure and environmental impact, as well as the team awards for outstanding contributions to surveying for SMEs and large firms were announced. The winners of the Ambassador of the Year and Lifetime Achievement Award were revealed at the ceremony too.
Commenting on the grand final winners, RICS UK Awards National Chair, Kerry Gibbs, said: “It is an honour to judge these awards. We had the pleasure of visiting each of the winning projects, and to meet with the teams behind them, and to see their passion is a truly heartwarming experience. These projects play an integral role in their communities, and wider local economies, and these awards allow us to recognise and celebrate the success of the surveyors across the UK delivering them.
“The teams and individuals behind these projects should be very proud of their successes, a huge congratulations to all of the winners.”
For further information on the RICS UK Awards please visit the RICS website.
