SURF Award winners announced at virtual ceremony
SURF’s annual awards ceremony took place digitally for the first time in its 23-year history.
SURF delivered a virtual ‘awards dinner’ for the first time in its 23-year history, postponing its annual sit-down dinner in December due to the ongoing pandemic. Representatives of the five category winning initiatives for 2020 were personally congratulated on their inspiring work by the Scottish Government’s Cabinet Secretary for Local Government and Communities, Aileen Campbell MSP.
The SURF Awards are delivered each year by SURF, a regeneration forum with over 300 cross-sector member organisations across Scotland, in partnership with the Scottish Government. The purpose is to highlight, celebrate and share the achievements of initiatives that address physical, social, and economic challenges in communities across Scotland.
Given the impacts of the pandemic, the awards had a particular focus in 2020 on celebrating organisations and communities that had continued to deliver projects and services throughout a year like no other. SURF’s panel of 20 independent judges was drawn from national regeneration bodies and community groups.
The judges carefully assessed the nominations in five thematic categories, virtually visiting 15 different shortlisted initiative, from Dumfries and Galloway to Gairloch and Campbeltown, before selecting the following category winners:
Housing and Regeneration: Nith Valley Leaf Trust Community-Owned Passivhaus Project (Closeburn, Dumfries, and Galloway). Scotland’s first community-owned homes built to ‘Passivhaus’ ultralow energy standards met two distinct community needs around a lack of affordable housing and addressing fuel poverty.
Creative Regeneration: The Glasgow Barons (Govan, Glasgow). A Govan-based orchestra initiative that brings the community together for musical performance showcases local talent and highlights Govan’s historical architecture.
Community-Led Regeneration: The Tannahill Centre (Ferguslie Park, Paisley). An underutilised centre has reformed its role and become a trusted community hub, providing an enhanced portfolio of services, and better engaging with the local community.
Supporting Youth Employability: Street League: Head, Body, Future (National). Head Body Future (HBF) is Street League’s online youth employment service, which works with young people who face insecurity every day.
Scotland’s Most Improved Place: Campbeltown Town Centre (Argyll and Bute). A combination of community-led regeneration and a multimillion-pound renovation project has produced a thriving town centre, and Campbelltown is becoming an increasingly attractive place to live, work and invest.
The five winning projects all demonstrated the value of a long-term approach to regeneration, with dedicated partners working strategically and inclusively to develop comprehensive plans and deliver real and sustainable benefits for all.
An additional Special Recognition Award was received by Ambitious Partnership for Improvement, a collaborative community effort in Larkhall, South Lanarkshire, for their outstanding effort to support their local community weather the impacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
The judges also recognised and commended the efforts of Feldy-Roo, a food initiative delivered in Aberfeldy and surrounding towns, and ‘We Stand Better When We Stand Together’, delivered by the Collydean Community Centre in Glenrothes.
The evening concluded with an after-dinner speech from Award-Winning Author, Journalist and Playwright Kirstin Innes. Kirstin’s first novel, Fishnet, won The Guardian’s ‘Not the Booker’ Prize in 2015 and is now in development for television with STV; her second novel, Scabby Queen, was published by 4th Estate in 2020 and longlisted for the Gordon Burn Prize. She is currently working on a play for the National Theatre of Scotland and a screenplay on the life of Muriel Spark.
Since 2003, the SURF Awards have been delivered by SURF in partnership with the Scottish Government. SURF is also grateful for additional support provided by Architecture & Design Scotland, Creative Scotland, Highlands & Islands Enterprise, Scotland’s Towns Partnership, the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations and Skills Development Scotland towards the delivery of thematic categories.