Damian Gray MCIOB, project manager at Berkeley St Edward was named Construction Specialist of the Year at LABC Building Excellence Awards held at the end of January.
The awards recognise residential projects across England and Wales that uphold the highest building standards. They include new build and social housing developments, non-residential works, and public buildings that showcase best practice in industry, as well as recognise the companies and individuals ensuring safe and sustainable buildings are delivered for local communities.
The awards are judged by an independent panel of experts and include Ros Thorpe from CIOB. Other judges for for 2025 came from the Construction Industry Council (CIC), the Chartered Institute of Architectural Technologists (CIAT), the National Fire Chiefs Council (NFCC), the Industry Competence Committee (ICC), and from LABC Warranty.
Emphasising the vital role of the independently judged awards scheme in signalling genuine quality in a sector that is grappling with a new building safety regime and fundamental culture change, Lorna Stimpson, CEO at LABC, said:
“True excellence is based on a demonstrable commitment to competence, quality and standards; these are the foundations of the Building Excellence Awards.
“Our people awards, which focus on the professionals in our industry, are particularly important, and reward those with the right cultures, drive, ethics, and professionalism.
“Rewarding excellence, competence and culture is about differentiating the good from the bad – this will help drive out the poor standards and behaviours of some actors, and signpost to the best examples others can follow.”
Individual and team awards
- Construction Specialist of the Year – Damian Gray, St Edward Homes Ltd
- LABC Warranty Site Manager of the Year – Sean Sadler, Morris Homes (Eastern) Ltd
- Best Residential & Small Commercial Designer – Matt Noades, Noades Architects, Hertfordshire Building Control
- Best Residential & Small Commercial Builder – Duncan & Son (Southwold) Ltd, East Suffolk Council
- LABC Newcomer of the Year – Tom Crouch, Hertfordshire Building Control
- Local Authority Building Control Surveyor of the Year – Teresa Komorowski, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
- LABC Team of the Year – Dorset Council
- Best Partnership with a Local Authority Building Control Team – Hoare, Ridge & Morris and East Suffolk Council
Projects
- Best Residential Extension – Claydon Farm House, Gloucestershire, Cotswold District Council
- Best Residential Conversion or Alteration to an Existing Home – Old Gwernyfed, Powys, Powys County Council
- Best Residential Conversion to a Single New Home – Canal View, Solihull, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council
- Best Individual New Home – Branksea Avenue, Dorset, BCP Council
- Best Small New Housing Development – The Lookout, Cornwall, Cornwall Council
- Best Medium Volume New Housing Development – Rolleston Leas, Staffordshire, East Staffordshire Borough Council
- Best High Volume New Housing Development – Freight Village, Tyne & Wear, Gateshead Council
- Best Small Social Housing Development – East Common Lane, North Lincolnshire, North Lincolnshire Council
- Best Large Social Housing Development – Wildbridge, Sussex, Arun District Council
- Best Non-residential Extension, Alteration or Conversion – Eagle Brow, Cheshire, Warrington Borough Council
- Best Non-residential New Build – Pixash Lane Recycling Centre, Somerset, Bath & North East Somerset Council
- Best Public or Community Building – Hwb Arloesi, Coleg Llysfasi, Denbighshire, Denbighshire County Council
- Best Residential Extension – Claydon Farm House, Gloucestershire, Cotswold District Council
More than 800 people from across England and Wales came together on 23 January 2026 to celebrate the awards.
Entries for the LABC Building Excellence Awards go through a three-stage process. This begins with nominations made in each of LABC’s 12 regions across England and Wales, followed by regional judging. All the regional winners are then nominated for the national awards, with the final winners being announced at the Grand Finals.
