THE Theatre Royal in Norwich has been crowned the overall winner of the RICS East of England Awards 2008. The major redevelopment project in the heart of the city fought off stiff competition to take the Project of the Year prize during a ceremony, held at Hatfield House, in Hertfordshire.

THE Theatre Royal in Norwich has been crowned the overall winner of the RICS East of England Awards 2008.

The major redevelopment project in the heart of the city fought off stiff competition to take the Project of the Year prize during a ceremony, held at Hatfield House, in Hertfordshire.

Now in their 18th year, the RICS Awards celebrate exemplary projects across four award categories - building conservation, regeneration, sustainability, and community benefit.

The Theatre Royal project, which also won the Community Benefit Award, was designed by Tim Foster Architects and saw the street elevation and front of house areas completely remodelled. The 1,300 seat auditorium was also refurbished and modernised.

The judges said: “The very clear winner is Theatre Royal Norwich. It is a delightful place to visit and is a worthy winner of the award.”

The evening's other top award winners were: Beeleigh Abbey, near Maldon, Essex , winner of the RICS East of England Building Conservation Award 2008; RSPB Environment and Education Centre, Purfleet, Essex, better known as Rainham Marshes, winner of the RICS East of England Regeneration Award 2008; and Kingspan Lighthouse, Watford, Hertfordshire, winner of the RICS East of England Sustainability Award 2008.

Two high profile projects in Bury St Edmunds were Highly Commended in the Building Conservation category - the West Front of Bury Abbey and Theatre Royal restorations.

David Potter, Royal Institute of Chartered Surveyors East operations director, said: “Congratulations to all those who won an award or received a commendation. I wish them all the very best of luck in the international final later this year. I would also like to thank our sponsors and all of the other entrants for the huge amount of effort they put in, which ensured that this year's competition was a big success.”

The 2008 RICS East of England regional dinner and awards ceremony was hosted by BBC presenter, Janine Machin. Special guest speaker was John Spence, of Harlow Renaissance.

The event was sponsored by ECA, English Heritage, English Partnerships, Inspire East and Ridgeons.