A rural conference centre featuring an abundance of timber products has won a sustainability award from the Civic Trust.
The £3.6m Kindersley Centre, which incorporates oak, Douglas fir and cedar, was one of just 19 winners from 364 entries in the trust’s 2005 environmental design awards.
The building, situated on a 2,250 acre farm in Lambourne, Berkshire, includes a soaring Oak Room with nine-metre high Douglas fir arches, solid oak flooring supplied by Aylesbury-based Osmo UK and a spruce ply ceiling.
Outside, the walls and roof are clad with cedar boarding and shingles.
The centre, which was also shortlisted in the 2004 Wood Awards, provides meeting and study spaces on two floors, plus an eco-friendly shop, organic kitchen, dining room and farm offices.
Construction work was by Swindon-based contractors EW Beard while Alec French Architects of Bristol designed the structure.
