A NEW headquarters complex at a horseracing stud near Newmarket has been named “Building of the Year” in the 2010 RIBA East Spirit of Ingenuity Awards.

The Dalham Hall Stud headquarters, designed by RH Partnership Architects of Cambridge, shared top honours in the Workspace category of the awards, sponsored by Cyril Sweett, together with the Creative Exchange building in St Neot’s, designed by 5th Studio of Cambridge for Huntingdonshire District Council.

But it was the spectacular stud building which impressed the judges of the overall Building of the Year title, chosen from among the winners of the seven award categories.

Peter Goodwin, chairman of the jury, said: “Of all the wide variety of buildings in the Spirit of Ingenuity Awards, this stud farm headquarters represented the most consistent marriage of architectural concept, site execution and very high quality maintenance by the client’s estate management team.

“It is an exemplary demonstration of architectural skill in resolving a unique brief with flair.”

Also among the winning projects was the newly-completed tower ceiling at St Edmundsbury Cathedral, designed by Freeland Rees Roberts Architects of Cambridge and Gothic Design Practice of Saffron Walden, which was joint winner of the Heritage award, supported by English Heritage.

The result was a double success for Bury, with the other joint winner being Queen Anne’s Summerhouse at Old Warden Park, Biggleswade, in Bedfordshire, for design work by the Bury-based Whitworth Co-Partnership for the Landmark Trust.

In the Community category, there were commendations for the Gainsborough Community Library in Ipswich, designed by Pick Everard of Bury St Edmunds for Suffolk County Council, and the Arrival building at the Hyde Hall gardens, near Chelmsford, designed by Laurie Wood Architects from Peldon, near Colchester, for the Royal Horticultural Society.

The category was won by the OPEN building in Norwich, designed by Hudson Architects of Norwich for the OPEN Youth Trust.

Other winning projects included the Queen Katharine Building at Kimbolton School in Cambridgeshire, designed by Hufton & Crow, (in the Education and Healthcare category, supported by Forticrete Ltd); the Garden House at King’s Lynn, designed by Emma Adams of Cambridge for client Bettina von Stamm (in the Home category, for residential extensions, conversions and remodelling); Garden Court, St Catharine’s College, Cambridge, desinged by 5th Studio of Cambridge (in the Residential Design category); and Cavendish House, Cambridge, designed by Mole Architects for clients Hugo Macey and Hajni Elias (Sustainability, supported by Solar Cube Ltd).

The judging panel included two RIBA chartered architects, Peter Goodwin of Chambers Goodwin & Partners and Richard Tavener, RIBA East chairman and director of RDT Design, together with two lay assessors, Clifford Vincent of Solar Cube and Greg Luton, regional director of English Heritage.