55 Colmore Row wins ‘Best Refurbished / Recycled Workplace’ Award

The multi-million pound restoration and refurbishment of 55 Colmore Row has been recognised at the British Council for Offices (BCO) Midlands and Central England Awards.

The Grade II listed building was among the winners, picking up the award for ‘Best Refurbished/Recycled Workplace’.

The conversion of 55 Colmore Row from a single occupier building to a modern office block was highly praised by the judges at the regional awards ceremony, which took place at Birmingham Town Hall.

IM Properties carried out a £30 million renovation project to create new office space and bring the historic ground floor banking hall back to life.

The judging panel highlighted the fact many challenges had been overcome by the developer, including the successful incorporation of the original Victorian banking hall and existing stone façades into the finished complex.

55 Colmore Row is now home law firm Pinsent Masons, property consultants Savills, and the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS).

Rob Groves, chairman of the BCO Midlands & East Anglia committee, said:

“A clear theme has emerged from entries across the region this year – delivering excellence in the face of challenging conditions.

“This includes everything from working around busy or short time frames for development, considering the public environment, or refitting historic and often iconic, local buildings.

“Our entrants not only navigated these challenges but used them to their advantage, maximising unusual features of old buildings in new designs and seamlessly linking developments in busy areas with public thoroughfares and train stations.”

The BCO Awards recognise the highest quality office developments across the UK with regional winners going through to the national ceremony in London on October 2.

The other Midlands winners were Alpha Works (projects up to 1,500 sq m), One Friargate in Coventry (corporate workspace), One Station Square in Cambridge (commercial workplace), and ASOS’s Contact Centre in Watford (fit out).