Dunmurry Presbyterian Church wins major architecture award

The project, designed by Belfast architects Hall Black Douglas, won the award for best building in the £250,000-£2.5 million category.

The Church was also shortlisted for the Liam McCormick prize for Building of the Year, which was awarded to the Lyric Theatre.

Dunmurry Presbyterian Church was nominated for this top award by an independent judging panel who said that, “The new church and halls is a confident statement of the engagement and relevance of the church for all generations.

“At the same time, it subtly maintains references and connections to the original 1860s, polychromatic brick building across the way.

“It strikes that difficult balance between reverence for shared memories and an open attitude to the town and communities.”

The Design Awards were presented at a prestigious ceremony, hosted by RSUA, at Titanic Belfast on Thursday May 17.

The organisers said the standard of entries to the 2012 awards was extremely high and a tribute to the quality local architecture, as the judging panel concluded that some of this year’s entries could confidently hold their head high in national-level competitions.