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The Stirling Prize, handed out every year by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA), is one of the most prestigious architecture awards out there. Each year, extraordinary new buildings across the UK, from skyscrapers to social housing, are pitted against one another as RIBA judges decide which one has made the most ‘significant contribution to the evolution of the built environment’. Now, the 2025 winner has been revealed.
In a ceremony at the Roundhouse last night (October 16), RIBA’s Stirling Prize for the best new building in Britain went to Appleby Blue Almshouse in Bermondsey – a housing complex built to combat loneliness and provide affordable homes for over-65s.
The almhouse, built on the site of a disused care home, was designed by Witherford Watson Mann for United St Saviour’s Charity, a local organisation that has been addressing social needs in the community for almost 500 years. It’s made up of 59 flats spread across five floors and communal facilities including a roof garden, courtyard, civic room and community kitchen.
Appleby Blue follows last year’s unlikely winner, the Elizabeth line. Judges described the building as ‘a provision of pure delight’ and praised it for setting ‘an ambitious standard for social housing among older people’.
Ingrid Schroder, director of the Architectural Association School of Architecture and jury chair, said: ‘This project is a clarion call for a new form of housing at a pivotal moment.
‘Built against the backdrop of two crises, an acute housing shortage and a growing loneliness epidemic among older people, Appleby Blue offers a hopeful and imaginative response, where residents and the surrounding community are brought together through the transformative nature of the design.’
Stephen Witherford from Witherford Watson Mann, said in response to the win: ‘Working closely and imaginatively with United St. Saviour’s Charity, we’ve created an environment that reduces loneliness, encourages connection, and supports a good later life.
‘The charity has made social housing aspirational, enabling people to grow old locally with the right support, benefiting both residents and the wider Southwark community. We’re honoured that the RIBA Stirling Prize recognises the power of architecture to create places that genuinely transform lives.’
Appleby Blue was up against some stiff competition. The other London buildings in the running were the newly restored Elizabeth Tower (that houses Big Ben), the London College of Fashion new building in Stratford’s Olympic Park and the Japanese-inspired Niwa House in East Dulwich. You can read more about each of those here.
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