Top performers honoured at Thames Valley Property Awards

The ninth annual Thames Valley Property Awards at The Pavilion, Ascot Racecourse, toasted the success of the region’s key property specialists.

The 18 award categories honoured the contribution made over the last 12 to 18 months by property agents, developers, planners, consultants, property lawyers and dealmakers in the Thames Valley. The awards included an Outstanding Contribution accolade for Andrew Brooks, Managing Director of Bewley Homes.

Richard Thompson, Managing Director of The Business Magazine, said: “The quality of entries this year was as high as ever and gave our judging panel some difficult decisions. There was much debate before agreeing on the finalists and winners.”

Category sponsors were BDB Pitmans, Boyes Turner, BP Collins, Gateley Legal, Haslams, Houston, IBB Law, Morgan Lovell, Rider Levett Bucknall, SEGRO, Sightline, Vail Williams and Workspace. With Mactaggart and Mickel as programme sponsors and Rider Levett Bucknall as event supporters. The Award’s media partner, real estate information company CoStar, compiled data for the judging panel.

Once again, the charity sponsored by the Awards was the Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice Service, which supports families in the Berkshire area. On the night, the audience donated £10,846 to the charity and a very generous anonymous donor in the room pledged to match the amount, taking the total to £21,692.

TV funnyman Marcus Brigstocke didn’t hold back in his hosting duties, keeping the room entertained with a raucous blend of jokes and anecdotes.

And the winners are…

Offices Consultancy of the Year (by number of deals)

Winner: Page Hardy Harris

“It was a different kind of year than usual but we did pretty well despite challenges like getting transactions completed in a tough market. The decision-making process has been protracted, meaning the office transaction market has been generally lower, although we maintained our deal levels. Highlights for us included Telford House in Farnham and Grove House in Grove Business Park, Maidenhead. We have a fantastic team and we support staff with training, from apprenticeship schemes to qualifying as surveyors.” Nick Hardy, Director, and Mark Harris, Director, Page Hardy Harris

Finalists:

• Duncan Bailey-Kennedy
• Hicks Baker
• Hollis Hockley
• Savills
• VSL & Partners

Offices Consultancy of the Year (by sq ft)

Winner: Cushman & Wakefield

“We are delighted to have won this prestigious award, which is a testament to the hard work and commitment of our South East Office Agency team. The occupational market recovered more quickly from the Covid-19 pandemic than economists had predicted, demonstrating the underlying resilience of the Thames Valley. We were proud to be involved with the most notable transactions completed during the period, including the leasing of The Bower at Stockley Park to Canon on behalf of Clearbell & Patrizia and 450 Longwater Avenue at Green Park to Three UK for Mapletree. We also advised our occupier clients on a number of strategic acquisitions in the region, such as Intercontinental Hotels Group at Windsor Dials.” Charles Dady, International Partner, Cushman & Wakefield

Finalists:  

• CBRE
• Dowley Turner Real Estate 
• Hollis Hockley
• Lambert Smith Hampton
• Savills 

Industrial/Logistics Consultancy of the Year (by number of deals)

Winner: JLL

“We have won this category before and are delighted to win again, especially with our renewed team who really are best-in-class. It has been a hard year in terms of getting deals over the line, but thanks to their efforts we have done well. One particular highlight was Unit 2 at Watchmoor Point in Camberley, which leads the way in sustainability and we secured a record rent for the region, which sets the tone for the future.” Sarah Downes, Director, JLL

Finalists:

• Chandler Garvey
• Duncan Bailey-Kennedy
• Fields Commercial
• Haslams Surveyors
• VSL & Partners

Industrial/Logistics Consultancy of the Year (by sq ft)

Winner: Colliers

“We’ve had a very strong year in the face of challenging economic circumstances and are confident that will continue into next year. Transaction highlights included the acquisition of new warehouse space on the Slough Trading Estate on behalf of a client who had been on the estate for nearly 100 years. They were concerned about relocating off the estate as they had built up a strong business and didn’t want to lose their workforce, so it was great to have been able to acquire an additional unit for them on the estate. Our team now has a headcount of 12 across London and West London and our strong bond and working closely together is paying off.” Isa Naeem, Senior Surveyor, Colliers

Finalists:

• CBRE
• Haslams Surveyors
• Hollis Hockley
• JLL
• VSL & Partners

Community Impact Award 

Winner: Jessop and Cook Architects

“In every project we do, we try and work with people who share our values on social, environmental and sustainable aspects. The firm puts its social responsibility over profit. We build relationships with the wider community and not just our clients. For us, it’s important that we understand what we can achieve by acting not just as architects but also as a facilitator to a wider group of people.” Rob Goacher, Project Architect, and Elliot O’ Brian, Apprentice Architect, Jessop and Cook Architects

Finalists:

• Active Workplace Solutions
• Reading Biscuit Factory
• The Curious Lounge

Property Marketing Campaign of the Year

Winner: Northwood Investors

“We launched a marketing campaign around two peregrine falcons nesting on the roof of the Blade in Reading. It’s not every day you have birds like that on top of your building. We already had a nesting box set up but didn’t know if it would be used and were able to film and document their chicks’ progress, even capturing some of their first flying lessons. We ran a live feed that people working in the building and in the town could watch. It created a great buzz and interest in the Blade.” Charles Benn, Associate Director, Hatch Real Estate

Finalists:

• Campus Reading

Sustainable Development of the Year

Winner: Here + Now

“Here + Now has ambitious sustainability targets with recycling as our main thrust. It comprises two buildings that were getting on for 20 years old and the project was very much a case of repurposing what was already there. Our main challenge was achieving our zero carbon goals for both operational and embodied elements and doing so during the Covid-19 pandemic. On-site facilities like the café, gyms and outdoor areas are very much part of our sustainability approach. We like to think that we have built a real community here.” Dan Ross, Senior Development Manager, V7

Finalists:

• Kingsbrook

Office Design Specialist of the Year 

Winner: Morgan Lovell

“Our design of post-Covid office space is based on creating a ‘home from home’ with an element of comfort that people have got used to when working from home. This comfort and familiarity helps productivity and is achieved in things like the use of natural textures and soft seating. We call it ‘resimercial’. Introducing smart technology is also important, such as audio-visual systems for Teams and Zoom meetings and desk booking systems for people to arrange space at times that suit them. It has been a busy year for us with many companies upsizing and downsizing.” Colin Allan, Managing Director, Morgan Lovell

Finalists:

• Active Workplace Solutions
• Office Principles
• Oktra

Development of the Year

Winner: Campus Reading – Morgan Lovell

“The inspiration behind Campus Reading was flexibility and to offer a next-generation workspace. With all the partners involved in the project, we have created the most wonderful environment with platinum BREAAM certification. The levels of innovation are phenomenal in its open-plan areas, tenant-ready spaces, restaurant, amenity features and landscaping. Wellbeing for occupants was embedded in the project brief and was the first port of call in all design and project meetings.” Colin Allan, Managing Director, Morgan Lovell

Finalists:

• Carnival Hub, Wokingham
• Here + Now
• Shinfield Creative Media Hub
• Shrivenham Sports Pavilion

Property Law Firm of the Year

Winner: Gateley Legal

“Our Thames Valley practice has grown rapidly and we are soon to have six partners and a team of 25 working on land acquisitions from our offices in Reading and Guildford. We have had a good year and have exceeded our expectations over the last three to four years. The judges said we ‘get under the skin’ of our clients which for us means understanding their businesses by spending time with them, as well as working closely with others parties involved in projects.” Andy Wilson, Partner, Gateley Law

Finalists:

• Herrington Carmichael
• Mills & Reeve

Young Property Person of the Year

Winner: Machelle Jan – IBB Law

“What is most important for me is my passion for the area of law I work in and being able to reflect the same passion that my clients have for their projects. That’s what really drives me. It has been a mixed year post-Covid for everyone in the property sector and it is still recovering, but we have been involved in some great projects with more in the pipeline. What I enjoy most about residential development law is that no two sites are the same – the variety keeps it fresh.” Machelle Jan, Senior Associate, IBB Law

Finalists: 

• Lauren Ainsley – Herrington Carmichael
• Damon Ball – A’Bear & Ball Architects
• Joseph Baum – MPC
• Matteo Scabbia – Sorbon Estates
• Agata Szumlas – Active Workplace Solutions  
• Joshua Watkins – Herrington Carmichael
• Vytas Zalys – Design Work Studios

Architectural Practice of the Year

Winner: TP Architects

“We have transformed the practice by focusing on the niche area of film studio development and concentrating our efforts on building our expertise here. We started with work at Bray Studios and were fortunate to be in the right place at the right time before everyone else picked up on the boom in this sector, which just keeps growing in the Thames Valley. It now accounts for around 40% of our business, with the remainder in areas that include residential, data centres and educational projects. In the film industry, clients need things done yesterday, so you have to be dedicated in looking after their interests.” Ed Drysdale, Director of Practice, and Natasha Gandhi, Director of Practice, TP Architects

Finalists:

• A’Bear & Ball Architects
• Connected Architecture
• Design Work Studios
• Jessop and Cook Architects
• JW Architects
• Philip Wadge Architecture 

Residential Development of the Year

Winner: Waterside Quarter

“For Waterside Quarter, we regenerated a waterway running off the river Thames and faced a number of environmental challenges to ensure it formed the heart of our development of 184-homes plus commercial units in Maidenhead. We have created an environment that people want to live in, with its wildlife and facilities that include an amphitheatre, restaurant and café. Construction is now complete and we are in the final phase of selling 70 flats and three commercial units.” Jason Seymour, Managing Director, Shanly Group

Finalists:

• Burleighfield House
• Danesfort
• Hardy’s Rise
• Malthouse Mews
• Plot 154 Graven Hill

Property Deal of the Year

Winner: Stage Fifty – Fraser Property

“Stage Fifty at Winnersh Film Studios is the start of something big in a maturing industry. In the next five years, the Thames Valley has the potential to be the new home for the film industry in the UK. The facilities at Stage Fifty will include the world’s largest fully encapsulated virtual production stage, which is due to be completed in 2024. The development will attract major film producers and help create local jobs. A single show can employ up to 1,000 people over many months. The film industry has ample demand for space which is probably unique compared to most markets at the moment.” Neil Seager, Partner, Haslams Surveyors, and Eilidh McAllister, Asset Manager, Frasers Property

Finalist:

• SEGRO buys Slough Office Portfolio

The Morgan Lovell Workplace of the Future Award

Winner: Three UK

“We had a three to five-year strategy but with Covid-19 a number of challenges around how people work hit us. However, they really aligned with the way our strategy played out. Our leases on buildings in Maidenhead and Reading ran out, allowing us to move to a new office at Green Park in Reading. We changed to a completely hybrid working model, enabling us to design the office for the future. I think we were massively ahead of the game in that sense. The office delivers a wow factor for staff and visitors. We gather feedback all the time to ensure people are getting what they want and the feedback says this is an amazing place to work, which helps us to recruit the best people who want to stay with Three.” David Russell, Head of People Workspace, Three UK

Finalists:

• Paul Basham Associates
• Reading Biscuit Factory
• The Curious Lounge

Co-Working Space of the Year 

Winner: Co-Space Group

“Our Reading space currently homes over 30 businesses and welcomes new and familiar hot deskers daily. We have 100% occupancy, and believe it is our community-driven environment, design-led office space and flexibility on short- and fixed-term contracts that keeps our members happy, productive and motivated. Community is a part of the Co-Space ethos, and this transcends from the Co-Space teams to all our members. Our appointment of a Community Manager not only maintains community spirit but also creates opportunities to collaborate and synergise among people and businesses. We strongly believe in doing our part to reduce our carbon footprint and help our members reach their own sustainability targets. Our furniture is sustainably sourced, flooring recyclable, sensor lights, recycle stations are positioned around the centre and as a business, we are 98% paperless.” Nicole Richardson, Sales & Marketing Manager, Co-Space

Finalists:

• Really Local Group
• The Curious Lounge 

Housebuilder of the Year

Winner: Elivia Homes

“We have had a very good year and set a record selling 300 homes. Our growth plan is to increase this to 600 homes annually. Our environmental and sustainability goals are important to us and we are always trying to be the best in the world. There’s a lot we can do to build sustainable homes and to do better than what the government wants from the industry. For us, customer care, both before and after people buy their homes, is also very important. We want our customers to be happy.” Iain Brown, Chief Financial Officer, Elivia Homes

Finalists:

• Darcliffe Homes
• Shanly Homes
• TA Fisher and Sons

Outstanding Contribution

Winner: Andrew Brooks, Managing Director, Bewley Homes

“I’ve worked in the industry for over 30 years, taking over the business from my father in 2013. He was highly respected in the industry and had built a fantastic legacy, so for me, it was probably harder than starting from fresh. I was more than surprised to win this award – you never really win something like this on your own. I am proud of the whole Bewley family and couldn’t have done any of it without them. I am also proud that as well as winning design awards the business has also won ROSPA health and safety, and customer service awards. Our principles have always been around quality design, products and customer journey. I’m also proud of our charity support, for example, by raising money to buy defibrillators, which is part of the way can help to build communities.”