A London building designed to combat loneliness wins an architecture award

A prestigious British architecture award has chosen as its big winner for 2025 a project that redefines social housing for older people.

This is the Stirling Prize, awarded every year by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) to the best new building in the United Kingdom.

The winning work is Appleby Blue, a complex of 59 apartments in Southwark, south London, aimed at the over 65s.

The project presents a contemporary approach to traditional nursing homes, seeking to combat loneliness and promote coexistence between residents.

Designed by the architecture firm Witherford Watson Mann, the project favors coexistence and a sense of community.

The building features several common areas that encourage interaction, such as a patio, a roof garden and a community kitchen.

According to the jury, the construction “sets an ambitious standard for social housing for the elderly”.

Ingrid Schroder, jury member and director of the Architectural Association School of Architecture, emphasized that the architects created “high-quality” spaces that communicate deep care for their residents.

Schroder also highlighted that the construction of Appleby Blue appears to be a “hopeful response” to the two current crises in the UK: the housing shortage and the growing loneliness among the elderly population.

The building was acclaimed for its spacious apartments, its corridors with benches, plants and terracotta floors, and “the feeling of an oasis in the woods”.

The Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) described the result as a living environment that “contrasts with the institutional climate often associated with care homes”.

Interestingly, Appleby Blue was built on the site of an old, abandoned nursing home.

The project continued a British tradition of building social housing for the elderly that had existed since the Middle Ages.

In this edition the prize had very important competitors, including the restoration of the Big Ben tower, a new fashion school and a scientific laboratory.

The Stirling Prize recognizes the building that contributes most to the advancement of architecture and the urban environment, considering aspects such as creative vision, innovation and originality.

This was the second win for Witherford Watson Mann.

In 2013 they won the award for the design of a modern house integrated into the historic Astley Castle in Warwickshire.

In previous years, the award has highlighted emblematic works such as the Elizabeth Line (a new railway line that crosses London from east to west), winner of 2024.

The Everyman Theater in Liverpool, Hastings Pier and the Scottish Parliament in Edinburgh also received the award, which has existed since 1996.