City Hall named country's 'Best of the Best' office

Sunderland's City Hall has been named the best office in the country, scooping one of the most prestigious national property awards at a glittering ceremony last night.

The municipal hub, in the heart of Sunderland city centre, has been named the best Corporate Workplace at the British Council for Offices (BCO) Awards, one of the most coveted prizes for commercial office space.  It was also named overall winner - Best of the Best - the pinnacle of achievement for office developments.

The award recognises the combined merits of City Hall's base build and fit out, confirming it as the best new office in the country.  Throughout the building, there are a number of collaborative settings to encourage agile working and improved services for the community.

The building was praised by judges who described how 'while embracing its famous city heritage, a bighearted welcome is woven into the fabric of this striking new site'.

The building - one of the early developments at Riverside Sunderland - faced stiff competition from the HALO Enterprise & Innovation Centre in Kilmarnock, Joules Head Office in Market Harborough, Goldman Sachs' HQ Plumtree Court in London and Teville Gate House in Worthing.  But the superior quality of design and finish was recognised by judges, helping seal the title for Sunderland's civic building.

Councillor Graeme Miller, leader of Sunderland City Council, said: "City Hall is an exceptional building - a statement of the level of ambition we have for the whole Riverside Sunderland development.  We now know it's the best in the country - the highest accolade. 

"It's brilliant to see City Hall recognised at one of the most competitive and prestigious awards for commercial development in the country and we're naturally very proud.  This is a building that is designed with our people at its heart.  It enables our residents to access to exceptional services and support, delivered from a building that is befitting of the city Sunderland is becoming - an ambitious, leading-edge place that puts people and communities first."

City Hall was designed by FaulknerBrowns and constructed by Sunderland firm Bowmer + Kirkland, ploughing millions of pounds into the local economy.  The building is one of a number of large-scale development projects progressing in the city centre, part of an ambitious vision to double the residential population in the city centre and increase employment by 50 per cent and fuelled by the backing of Legal & General.

The council is one of a number of organisations operating out of the building, with DWP, Gentoo and Sunderland College also based out of City Hall.  A range of people-focused services started operating out of City Hall last year, including the council's Customer Service Centre, with public-access computers available to enable residents to make benefits applications and access other online services from the building's open foyer.  The venue has also started to host weddings, as well as a range of other public and community events. 

The council vacated the former Civic Centre, paving the way for its demolition later this month, with plans afoot for the creation of a new residential community on the edge of the city centre. 

To stay up to date with progress at City Hall and other Riverside Sunderland developments, visit www.riversidesunderland.com or follow @RiversideSund on social media.