Housing Award for Threshold Centre

(Press Release from Bruges Tozer Partnership)
Frome based architects, Bruges Tozer Partnership won a prestigious Design Award last week. President of the RIBA (Royal Institute of British Architects) Ruth Reid, presented Richard Swann and Nigel Honer with the SW Town and Country Design Housing Award for their innovative cohousing development at the ‘Threshold Centre’ near Gillingham, Dorset.

The Threshold Centre is a pioneering Cohousing community. It provides a model for a greener, more affordable and more neighbourly way of life. The redevelopment of a farmhouse, outbuildings and barns around a shared green space provides 14 homes, a ‘common house’ including guest accommodation, educational facilities, car pool, market garden and many other shared amenities. It is the very first Cohousing scheme in the country to have a mix of both private and social housing, working with Synergy Housing Association, and has achieved the prestigious 'Excellent' rating in the Ecohome assessment method. The scheme has also been shortlisted for the UK Sustainability Awards to be announced in November.

Designer and contract administrator Richard Swann said “It is very satisfying that the achievements of this groundbreaking project have been acknowledged. We worked with a dedicated group of Cohousing enthusiasts for four years to bring this about despite several financial and planning obstacles and the small community is now finally enjoying living together in their low-energy homes."

Richard is also a director of the Frome Cohousing Group, a group of Frome people seeking opportunities to develop cohousing projects locally, and a founder member of Sustainable Frome.

Bruges Tozer Architects
15th October 2010

Bruges Tozer are architects based in Beckington near Frome - http://www.brugestozer.co.uk and are experts in sustainable design (see http://www.brugestozer.co.uk/sustainable.html)

The Sustainability Award information can be found here - http://sustainabilityawards.building.co.uk/finalists/
5. The Ecohome assessment method is by BREEAM, the Building Research Establishment Assessment Method (see http://www.breeam.org/page.jsp?id=21 )

Bruges Tozer
Cliffords Mill,
Cliffords Farm,
Bath Road,
Beckington,
BA11 6SQ
01373 831256