RTPI Scotland Awards for Planning Excellence Winners
Congratulations to the RTPI Scotland Awards for Planning Excellence winners 2023 who were announced at our awards celebration on 15 June at Clayton Hotel, Glasgow.
Overall Winner
Zetland Park Project entered by Falkirk Council
The Zetland Park Project is an exemplar of community driven, local authority enabled place making focussed park regeneration. It has delivered above and beyond its original proposals and achieved its main objective: to rejuvenate Portonian (collective noun for Grangemouth People) Pride. To achieve this at any time is a commendable success, to achieve this entirely throughout Covid and multiple national lockdowns, price increases and supply issues is remarkable. At a time of global change and re-evaluation, this project has reaffirmed that heritage projects can make a massive difference to people’s wellbeing and lives as well as their quality of place.
Best Plan
Aberdeen Net Zero Routemap entered by Aberdeen City Council
As a city at the heart of the global energy sector, a just energy transition is a vital priority for Aberdeen. Through creation of a Net Zero Aberdeen Routemap, sectors from across the city have co-created a pathway leading the way towards a net zero Aberdeen by 2045. Strong collaboration is at the core of these net zero ambitions, recognising that climate change is a challenge that will affect us all and can’t be solved by one organisation alone.
Best Project
University of Glasgow Western Campus entered by University of Glasgow
The University of Glasgow is investing £1.3 billion to create a sustainable, world-class urban quarter that integrates into the social and cultural fabric of Glasgow, with support from a Masterplan focused on placemaking. The development, one of the UK's largest, aims to bring people together in a dynamic environment to stimulate research and foster greater integration between academic, local communities, and businesses. The first building delivered is the Mazumdar-Shaw Advanced Research Centre (ARC), which acts as the creative and collaborative heart of research at the university. The £118m building helps bridge boundaries between research, cross-subject collaboration, and true societal impact.
Planning Authority of the Year
Strategic Place Planning Service, Aberdeen City Council
Aberdeen City Council’s Strategic Place Planning service area includes the physical, social and economic activities used to maintain, regenerate and strengthen the place of Aberdeen. Their focus is to enable, facilitate and deliver effective placemaking across the City. This includes all of the planning, transport, environmental, housing, building, building standards and digital initiatives that will help to deliver major infrastructure projects, meet the outcomes in the City’s Local Outcome Improvement Plan and help strengthen the wider economy of Aberdeen and the wider City Region.
Young Planner of the Year
Sarah Purves, Fife Council
Sarah is a dedicated, enthusiastic Planning Officer working in Fife Council's Planning Service. She joined from high school on a trainee planning assistant internship, progressing successfully within various roles. She now plays an integral role in the Major Business & Priority Team. She also leads on the St Andrews West Strategic Development Area, negotiating place-based outcomes for various development proposals in delivering overarching spatial principles for the area. She is a keen advocate for non-standard entry into the planning profession (alternatives to full time study) and also leads Fife's APC CPD programme, advising colleagues through the RTPI APC process.
The RTPI Scotland Awards for Planning Excellence recognise and highlight the positive contribution planning professionals make in the communities we serve around the world.
And then onto our national celebration
All the RTPI Scotland Awards winning entries will be put forward for the RTPI Awards for Planning Excellence national awards*. The national shortlist will be announced on 9 October. And the winners will be honoured at a celebration ceremony taking place in London on 21 November 2023.
*All Young Planner of the Year winners will be entered into the national shortlist and will be judged by the national judges.
For more information
If you have any questions, please visit the awards hub or contact contact us.
