A SCHOOL in London has seen off competition from a cancer care centre in Lanarkshire and a university art gallery in Manchester to win the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) Stirling Prize 2015 for the UK's best new building.
Situated in the London borough of Wandsworth, the design of Burntwood School by Allford Hall Monaghan Morris (AHMM) transformed the 1950s buildings of the large comprehensive, and its campus for 2,000 girls and 200 staff.
The architects created six new faculty buildings and two large cultural buildings linking original buildings by renowned 1950s architect Sir Leslie Martin.
It offers a range of teaching spaces from conventional classrooms to interactive open spaces.
The RIBA Stirling Prize is now in its 20th year and sponsored by Almacantar. It is the UK's most prestigious architecture prize.
London constructions dominated the shortlist. Aside from Burntwood, the other buildings were: Darbishire Place, Peabody Housing London by Niall McLaughlin Architects; NEO Bankside housing by Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and University of Greenwich Stockwell Street Building by Heneghan Peng architects.
Outside of the capital, The Whitworth, University of Manchester by MUMA and Maggie's Cancer Care Centre, Lanarkshire by Reiach and Hall Architects were recognised.
The judges said: "Burntwood sets a standard in school design that every child in Britain deserves. It is a culmination of many years of creative toil by AHMM in designing schools up and down the country. This is their masterpiece."
It is the first time AHMM has won the RIBA Stirling Prize.
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