The new category was one of many celebrating excellence at the 2024 British Construction Industry Awards (BCIA).
The first-ever ICE President’s Nature and People-Positive Champion has been named at the 2024 British Construction Industry Awards (BCIA).
Julia Baker, technical director – nature services at Mott MacDonald, won the one-and-only accolade for her work to make connections between nature, net zero, health and resilience.
The category was inspired by Professor Anusha Shah’s presidential theme.
On why Baker was a worthy winner, the judges noted: “We now have a British standard and a mandatory measure for biodiversity net gain, delivered for and with those who so rarely have a voice.
“Julia’s care, insight and determination is an inspiration for us all in creating a nature and people positive planet.”
Cleaning up the River Thames
The Thames Tideway Tunnel, affectionately known as the ‘super sewer’, took home the Project of the Year Award on the night.
The project was designed to cut down the amount of sewage entering the River Thames in London by 95%.
The 25km tunnel stretches from Acton in west London to Abbey Mills pumping station in Newham in the east.
The BCIA judges agreed the Thames Tideway Tunnel pushed boundaries and delivered success in every area of the project:
- Stakeholder engagement
- Placemaking
- Equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI)
- Decarbonisation
Judges also highlighted that the project set new safety standards, with extensive training required to gain access to site.
This resulted in no life-threatening or life-changing injuries throughout the 40 million person hours worked.
Above all, the judges felt the project’s environmental and social impact built on the legacy of Sir Joseph Bazalgette, who first designed London’s sewers and helped stop a cholera outbreak.
Jacobs was the lead designer on the project. Other contributors include: BAM Nuttall, Morgan Sindall, Balfour Beatty Group, Ferrovial Agroman UK, Laing O’Rourke Construction, Costain, Vinci Construction Grands Projets, Bachy Soletanch, Amey, and Thames Water.
Celebrating projects with social purpose
The Small Project of the Year Award went to Bluebird, a project to provide supported housing to people recovering from homelessness in Southend, Essex.
The urban generation project, built to Passivhaus standard, sits in an area of high poverty.
The judges said: “[The project] brought together the community and supply chains through extensive engagement and collaboration to achieve a remarkable outcome for the money involved.”
The project was commissioned by the Homeless Action Resource Project (HARP) with SKArchitects as lead designer and AW Hardy & CO as lead contractor.
The judges felt that for a local charity to tackle such an important social challenge with sustainability, resilience and the end user in mind was “truly special”.
The full list of winners of the BCIA 2024
- Environmental Project of the Year – Thames Tideway Tunnel
- Environment & Sustainability Initiative of the Year – ‘Urban mining’ at the Elephant and TBC.London
- Retrofit Project of the Year – Bristol Beacon
- Carbon Net Zero Initiative of the Year – St Andrews House
- Social Infrastructure Project of the Year – The Wave, University of Sheffield
- Community Impact Initiative of the Year – Norton Folgate
- Place Making Project of the Year – Union Terrace Gardens
- Health, Safety & Wellbeing Initiative of the Year – Rethinking Safety Through Inclusion and Wellbeing
- Commercial Property Project of the Year – Norton Folgate
- Digital Initiative of the Year – Extending M25 Working Windows
- Residential Project of the Year – Marylebone Square
- Partnership Initiative of the Year – Cargo Tunnel Refurbishment Project – Heathrow and Mace
- Cultural & Leisure Project of the Year – The Salvation Army Territorial Headquarters
- Productivity Initiative of the Year – Windworks Infrastructure Wind Farm Project
- Transport Project of the Year – Halifax Bus Station Redevelopment
- Product Innovation of the Year – Align Kern Tunnel Services Dismantling Gantry
- Utility Project of the Year – London Power Tunnels Phase 2 – Package 2
- Temporary Works Initiative of the Year – Barmouth Bridge Metallic Replacement
- Upgrade & Renewal Project of the Year – North-West Water Treatment Works Upgrade
- The ICE President’s Nature and People-Positive Champion – Julia Baker
- The IPA’s Industry Innovation Champion – HS2 Chiltern Tunnel
- NIC Design Principles Award – Thames Tideway Tunnel
- Initiative of the Year Award – Windworks Infrastructure Wind Farm Project
- Small Project of the Year Award – Bluebird
- Project of the Year Award – Thames Tideway Tunnel
The awards took place on 9 October at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House Hotel in London.
