Housing Design Awards Shortlist Revealed

The Housing Design Awards (HDAs), established in 1948 by the Government to support a new NHS, is the longest-running programme in the world dedicated to recognising the best new places to live across England and Wales.

Now in its 78th year, the HDA remains the only awards programme supported by all three major built environment institutions: RICS, RIBA, and RTPI. For the lifetime of this parliament the awards are to be chaired by Joanna Averley, the Chief planner. 

This year, the awards received 102 submissions, now narrowed down to a shortlist of 48. The awards always reward several specialist categories, including a Healthy Homes Award, Happi Awards for Senior Housing Designs, and VELUX Housing Design Awards 2025: Elevating Light, Comfort, and Sustainability.

The focus of this year’s competition is on designs that maximize natural light, promote healthy living, and embrace sustainable building practices, all while responding thoughtfully to the context of the environment.

A cross-disciplinary judging panel, consisting of 20 national experts in fields ranging from planning and urban design to biodiversity and low-carbon solutions, will visit the shortlisted projects over the coming months. These experts will assess and select the winning project, which will be announced and celebrated at a ceremony later this year. 

Explore the shortlisted projects on the HDA awards website.  

You can also access an extensive archive of all previously shortlisted schemes, searchable by a range of themes and criteria. This freely available resource features hundreds of detailed case studies and films that showcase the best of new residential development and highlight what makes these projects successful.