JUST months after the completed refurbishment of a dilapidated Brigantium roundhouse site in Rochester, the finished product has been shortlisted for a national architecture award.

The development was carried out by students from Newcastle University’s School of Architecture, Planning and Landscape, who worked with the local community and Kielder Water & Forest Park Development Trust’s art & architecture programme.

They constructed an open air amphitheatre and contemporary timber pavilion to be used for stargazing, musical performances and a range of community workshops and village activities, which was unveiled in August.

The Royal Institute of British Architects Journal (RIBAJ) has now announced that the roundhouse is on the shortlist for its McEwan Award, which represents ‘architecture for the common good.’

Newcastle University’s director of architecture Graham Farmer said: “It is wonderful that another of our projects at Kielder is gaining attention through a national architecture award, especially as this one recognises work carried out for the common good and with social responsibility.

“The Rochester roundhouse may be modest in scale, but it embodies huge ambition and goodwill on behalf of all those involved. We are competing against multi-million pound projects for this award but the roundhouse really offers something unique.”

Kielder art and architecture curator Peter Sharpe said: “Many hours of planning and hard work went into creating this superb community facility and it is wonderful to see it recognised in this way.”

The winners will be announced online in the coming weeks.