Wood Awards 2023 launches call for entries

The call for entries for the Wood Awards 2023 is now open. Enter your wood-centric building, furniture or product before 23 June 2023 and be in with the chance of having it recognised as the best in the UK.

Architects, engineers, installers, furniture makers, product designers – or anyone else with an exceptional timber project – can now enter via the Wood Awards website – free of charge – for the opportunity to receive a highly coveted Wood Award.

Since 1971, the Wood Awards has been the UK’s premier competition in the timber design and construction industries. By recognising and rewarding outstanding timber design, craftsmanship and installation - and showcasing the many ways in which timber transforms and enriches our lives - the Wood Awards acts as a vehicle to drive positive change in our built environment.

A wide range of projects

Submissions are split into 'Buildings' and 'Furniture & Product', with categories including ‘Commercial & Leisure’, ‘Education & Public Sector’, ‘Interiors’, ‘Private’, ‘Small Project’, as well as ‘Bespoke’, ‘Production’, and ‘Student’, respectively.

This covers a wide range of projects, alongside one additional category introduced in 2022: ‘Restoration & Reuse’, which will recognise the ways timber is preserving and enhancing our architectural heritage – and importantly – reducing the embodied carbon of construction.

The prestigious Gold Award is given to the standout project that the judges deem to be the overall winner-of-winners. As well as this one, other awards that can be given at the judges’ discretion include the Structural Award and, for the first time, a newly introduced Sustainability Award.

The Wood Awards is unique in that it's not-for-profit and purely aimed at recognising excellence. It also features an elite independent judging panel that assesses all submitted entries, as well as visiting each shortlisted project in person. This­ makes the Wood Awards an exceptionally rigorous competition.

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Homerton College Dining Hall – Gold, Structural and Education & Public Sector winner, 2022

Judging panel

The Buildings judging panel will be led by Jim Greaves of Hopkins Architects; and Furniture & Product headed up by design critic, curator and journalist, Corinne Julius.

Jim Greaves, Chair of Buildings judges, said: “This year we have a new ‘restoration and re-use’ category, which will recognise the work of designers and constructors who've chosen to restore and adapt existing buildings. We've also asked Neil Smith, of Max Fordham, to assist the judges in their assessment of the entries' environmental performance. With each new year, the ambition and breadth of the Wood Awards entries grows, and I'd positively encourage everyone involved in an interesting timber project to participate.”

Corinne Julius, Chair of Furniture judges, comments: “The Wood Awards are aimed at encouraging the use and appreciation of wood by the public, industry, makers and students. We hope that the Awards promote a renewed appreciation of this beautiful, varied, sustainable and renewable material. Wood is the material of the future.”

Dave Hopkins, CEO of Timber Development UK, comments: “Timber Development UK is delighted to be leading on the Wood Awards 2023 after a stellar first year of organisation for 2022. We want to encourage more people to use wood in all kinds of design projects in order to try and decarbonise the material world - and believe that the first step to doing this is to inspire people with incredible designs.”

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Fenland Black Oak – Bespoke Winner, 2022

Buildings panel: Jim Greaves, Hopkins Architects; Andrew Lawrence, Arup; Kirsten Haggart, Waugh Thistleton Architects; Nathan Wheatley, engenuiti; David Morley, David Morley Architects; Ruth Slavid, architecture journalist; Jonas Lencer, dRMM; Andy Trotman, Timberwright; Neil Smith, Max Fordham.

Furniture & Products panel: Corinne Julius, critic, curator and journalist; Oliver Stratford, Disegno; Yael Mer, Raw-Edges; Eleanor Lakelin, sculptor; Sebastian Cox, furniture designer.

Conditions of entry

With permission from the owner, anyone associated with a building or product that's been completed in the last two years is able to enter. Buildings must be located within the UK, while furniture and other products must have been either designed or manufactured in the UK. Fitted furniture must be in the UK. There's no restrictions on a project's size or budget. Entrants are welcome to submit more than one project.

All entries must be submitted via www.woodawards.com. The 2023 shortlist will be announced in September and showcased at a specially commissioned exhibition. The Wood Awards has ambitious plans for an exciting finale to the competition, further details on both will be announced in due course.

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