RIBA STIRLING PRIZE LECTURE: PLYMOUTH

The UK’s best new building 2026 

Take your seat for Design West’s Annual Stirling Prize lecture. Awarded annually to the UK’s best new building, the RIBA Stirling Prize is the country’s most prestigious architecture award. 

Join us this November at the University of Plymouth as 2026 winner Mary Duggan shares the story of Lion Green Road – a powerful demonstration of what ambitious public housing can achieve. 

Proving that density, design and dignity can go hand in hand, the project brings affordability, generosity & architectural quality together to create homes and places shaped by care. 

“Lion Green Road shows that density can be achieved without compromising the quality of the places we create.” Chris Williamson, RIBA President & Stirling Prize Jury 

Designed by Mary Duggan Architects with RUFF Architects for Croydon Council, Lion Green Road transforms a sloping car park in Coulsdon into 157 homes, with an equal mix of social rent and private ownership. The original brief was for around 80.  

Five thirteen-sided brick blocks step across a site that falls eight metres, framing views of the park and surrounding hills. Winding paths, allotments, play areas and shared gardens weave between the buildings, creating a sense of neighbourliness and belonging on the edge of the city. 

‘Oozing quality… It puts a welcome spotlight back on housing design – at a time when the government plans to pump £39bn into the sector’ Oliver Wainwright, The Guardian 

Every home is dual-aspect, bringing light and air from two sides. A consistent material palette unites the buildings, while subtle shifts in height and orientation give each its own character. Built to a modest budget, this garden neighbourhood shows how thoughtful design can create more, gaining the most from a challenging site.  

Join Mary Duggan as she reflects on ideas, decisions and collaboration behind Lion Green Road – and what it takes to create housing of lasting quality. 

 
Held in partnership with RIBA and University of Plymouth, the event is kindly supported by Morgan Sindall and BDP. 
 

The event is open to the public, professionals, students and politicians alike.  

We welcome everyone with an interest in design to join us.  
 

Early booking advised. 

OUR SPEAKER

Mary Duggan, Mary Duggan Architects 

Our talks are open to the public and professionals alike.
The event takes place at Arnolfini, Bristol, BS1 4QA