The Hill Group won the most coveted prize in British housebuilding at the 2023 What House? Awards, powered by myenergi and presented by comedian Ed Gamble at a glittering gala lunch at the JW Marriott Grosvenor House hotel in London on Friday.
Hill won Housebuilder of the Year and also collected eight other awards – a stunning achievement by the company, based in Waltham Abbey, Essex – including Gold for Best Large Housebuilder and two Golds for its Rubicon development in Cambridge in the Best Development and Best Exterior Design categories.
“Exceptional homes and the flourishing communities we create are the result of the dedication and passion of our team,” said The Hill Group founder and chairman Andy Hill.
Weston Homes retained its Best Medium Housebuilder title, as well as winning Gold for Best Sustainable Development, while Best Small Housebuilder Gold went to Horgan Homes, based in the West Midlands.
It was an extraordinary day too for heritage developer City & Country, who took all three awards in the Best Renovation category, as well as Gold for Best Luxury House, winning seven awards in total.
Other Gold winners were Apo (Best Build to Rent Developer), Churchill Retirement Living (Best Retirement Home Developer), Yorkshire Country Properties (Best Starter Home), One Housing (Best House), Hibau (Best Smart Home), Wedgewood Homes (Best Apartment Scheme), Orbit and Wates (Best Partnership Scheme), Octagon (Best Luxury Development), Battersea Power Station (Best Mixed-Use Development), Countryside Partnerships and Taylor Wimpey Central London (Best Regeneration Scheme), Canary Wharf Group (Best Interior Design) and Redrow (Best Public Realm).
The Awards, in front of an audience of 1,400 housebuilding industry professionals and guests, were hosted by one of the UK’s most popular comedians Ed Gamble, co-creator of the chart-topping podcast Off Menu with James Acaster, a regular team captain on BBC’s Mock the Week and a judge on the BBC’s Great British Menu.
“It was a magnificent celebration of the very best new homes in Britain. The quality of the entries, yet alone the winners, was quite exceptional – testimony to industry excellence, with some great housebuilders and developments just missing out on awards this year,” said Rupert Bates, editorial director of What House? and Show House magazine.
“Once again, the What House? Awards were the day the new homes flag flies highest. Many congratulations to all the winners and a big thank you to all our sponsors and judges and everybody who attended the biggest day in the housebuilding calendar.”
Here is the full list of winners of the WhatHouse? Awards 2023, and you can read the Judges Report here:
Housebuilder Of The Year
The Hill Group
Best Large Housebuilder – sponsored by heylo
Gold: The Hill Group
Silver: Redrow
Silver: Berkeley Group
Bronze: Bellway
Best Medium Housebuilder – sponsored by Roca
Gold: Weston Homes
Silver: City & Country
Bronze: Hayfield
Bronze: Elivia
Best Small Housebuilder – sponsored by Nicholls & Clarke Group
Gold: Horgan Homes
Silver: Fruition Properties
Silver: Freeman Homes
Bronze: Yorkshire County Properties
Best Build To Rent Developer – sponsored by Sky
Gold: Apo
Silver: Quintain
Bronze: Dandara Living
Bronze: Greystar
Best Retirement Home Developer – sponsored by Spring
Gold: Churchill Retirement Living
Silver: McCarthy Stone
Bronze: Audley Group
Bronze: Richmond Villages
Best Starter Home – sponsored by Connells Group
Gold: The Knowle, Shepley, West Yorkshire, Yorkshire Country Properties
Silver: Springfield Park, Maidstone, Kent, Weston Homes
Bronze: Hayes Village, Hayes, Middlesex, Barratt London
Best House – sponsored by Athena Surfaces
Gold: Granville Gardens, Golders Green, London, One Housing
Silver: ‘The Beech’ at Marleigh, Cambridge, The Hill Group and Marshall Group
Bronze: ‘The Caversham’ at Otium Lake, Pluckley, Kent, Hibau
Bronze: ‘The Mitchell Grand’ at Bearsden, Glasgow, Robertson Homes
Best Smart Home – sponsored by myenergi
Gold: ‘The Caversham’ at Otium Lake, Pluckley, Kent, Hibau
Best Apartment Scheme – sponsored by Symphony
Gold: Coastlands, Hythe, Kent, Wedgewood Homes
Silver: Triptych Bankside, Southwark, London, JTRE London
Silver: Bloom, Nine Elms, Battersea, London, Greystar
Bronze: Rubicon, Eddington, Cambridge, The Hill Group
Bronze: The Silk District, Whitechapel, London, Mount Anvil
Best Luxury House – sponsored by Haddonstone
Gold: ‘The Lakehouse North’, St Osyth Priory, Essex, City & Country
Silver: ‘Coppice’, Waterbank, Prestbury, Cheshire, Altin Homes
Bronze: ‘West Meadow’, The Meadow, Westcliffe, Kent, Holloway Studio
Best Renovation – sponsored by Show House
Gold: The Kitchen Yard, The 1840, St George’s Gardens, Wandsworth, London, City & Country
Silver: The Engine House, Midhurst, West Sussex, City & Country
Bronze: Director's Suites, Factory No.1, Bristol, City & Country
Best Development – sponsored by Premier Guarantee
Gold: Rubicon, Eddington, Cambridge, The Hill Group
Silver: Highworth, Swindon, Wiltshire, Backhouse
Bronze: Heartwood, Docking, Norfolk, The Hill Group
Bronze: Tornagrain, Moray Estate, Inverness, Places For People
Best Partnership Scheme – sponsored by Wren Contracts
Gold: Park East, Erith, Kent, Orbit and Wates
Silver: Timber Works, Cambridge, The Hill Group and Cambridge City Council
Silver: Fisherton Street, Westminster, London, Westminster City Council and Linkcity
Bronze: Blackhorse View, Walthamstow, London, Barratt London, Transport for London and L&Q
Best Luxury Development – sponsored by Laufen
Gold: Broadoaks Park, West Byfleet, Surrey, Octagon
Silver: Wardian, Canary Wharf, London, EcoWorld Ballymore
Bronze: The Pavilions, Alderley Park, Nether Alderley, Cheshire, PH Homes
Best Mixed-Use Development – sponsored by myenergi
Gold: Battersea Roof Gardens, Battersea, London, Battersea Power Station
Silver: Wood Wharf, Canary Wharf, London, Canary Wharf Group
Bronze: Embassy Gardens, Nine Elms, London, EcoWorld Ballymore
Best Sustainable Development – sponsored by TriConnex
Gold: Abbey Quay, Barking, London, Weston Homes
Silver: Hayfield Rise, West Lavington, Wiltshire, Hayfield
Bronze: Rubicon, Eddington, Cambridge, The Hill Group
Bronze: St George’s Mead, Semington, Wiltshire, Newland Homes
Best Regeneration Scheme – sponsored by Haier
Gold: Greenwich Millennium Village, London, Countryside Partnerships and Taylor Wimpey Central London
Silver: St John’s Way, Clapham, London, Peabody
Bronze: Platting Village, Miles Platting, Manchester, Lovell Homes and Manchester City Council
Bronze: Fisherton Street, Westminster, London, Westminster City Council and Linkcity
Best Interior Design – sponsored by Signtouch Interactive Technologies
Gold: The Penthouse, One Park Drive, Canary Wharf, London, Canary Wharf Group
Silver: Mitchell Grand, Thorn View, Bearsden, Glasgow, Robertson Homes
Bronze: Sunningdale Park, Ascot, Berkshire, Audley Villages
Best Exterior Design – sponsored by myenergi
Gold: Rubicon, Eddington, Cambridge, The Hill Group
Silver: Ten Degrees, Croydon, London, Greystar
Bronze: ‘The Lambourne’, Sanderling Reach, West Mersea, Essex, City & Country
Best Public Realm – sponsored by What House?
Gold: Woodford Garden Village, Woodford, Cheshire, Redrow
Silver: St Osyth Priory, St Osyth, Essex, City & Country
Bronze: Grand Union, Alperton, London, St George
Bronze: Hayfield Wood, Broad Blunsdon, Wiltshire, Hayfield
You can read the Judges Report in full here.