Refurbishments of Victorian hospital, Art Deco lido and 15th century tower among 14 shortlisted schemes
The transformations of several historic buildings including a swimming pool, a 15th century tower and a Victorian hospital are among 14 finalists in the prize for the best new buildings in Scotland.
The Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland said the shortlist for this year’s RIAS Awards was “striking in its diversity in terms of scale, location and purpose”.
Shortlisted schemes include Bennetts Associates’ repurposing of the Scottish capital’s Old Royal Infirmary for the Edinburgh Futures Institute, Studio Octopi’s rejuvenation of Tarlair Outdoor Pool Pavilion and GRAS’ restoration of Preston Tower.
The list also features several private residences, including WT Architecture’s Taigh na Coille, PagePark’s Rosslyn Castle and Baillie Baillie Architects’ Iorram.
Tamsie Thomson, chief executive of the Royal Incorporation of Architects in Scotland, said: “Our judges have their work cut out to select the 2026 RIAS Awards winners from such an exceptional shortlist.
“Visiting shortlisted projects with the judges is always one of the highlights of my year, and is a thrilling reminder of the talent and skill shown by architects in every corner of the country.
”This is certainly the first year we have had to commandeer a fishing boat to visit one of the remote island projects, so it’s notepads and sea legs at the ready as we head off to find this year’s winners.”
The 14 projects on the shortlist will now each be visited by the 2026 RIAS Awards jury, which includes Elilidh Izat (director, Izat Arundell), Owen Hopkins (director, the Farrell Centre), Chris Dyson (director, Chris Dyson Architects) and Anna Liu (director, Tonkin Liu and RIBA Awards representative).
The winners of this year’s RIAS Awards will be announced at the end of May. As in previous years, the winning projects will also make up the ‘longlist’ for the RIAS Andrew Doolan Best Building in Scotland Award, the pinnacle of the RIAS awards programme.
Recipients of the 2026 RIAS Awards are also eligible for recognition in the current RIBA Awards.
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