Astley Castle in Warwickshire, a venue recently restored by York-based building conservation specialist William Anelay Ltd, has received the ultimate architectural accolade in the form of the RIBA Stirling Prize for Architecture.
The castle was transformed from a derelict shell into a stunning Landmark Trust holiday home over a 20 month time frame from September 2010 with William Anelay working under the auspices of architects Witherford Watson Mann.
It finished ahead of five other projects across the UK with 27% of 65,000 votes in a much publicised BBC website poll.
William Anelay Chairman Charles Anelay, the eighth generation of the Anelay family to be involved in the 266 year-old business, commented: “This is the ultimate accolade for William Anelay for what was one of the most complex and challenging projects we’ve ever worked on.
Anelay’s MD Tony Townend added “The project clearly struck a chord with the UK public and we’re delighted that the project has been recognised in this way.”