Recognised organisations include York Minster and the Natural History Museum
RIBA has named six organisations shortlisted for this year’s Client of the Year Award, which recognises the role played by clients in championing architectural excellence.
The 2026 shortlist for the 28th iteration of the annual award includes York Minster for two projects by Tonkin Liu on the precinct surrounding the grade I-listed cathedral in York. The Heritage Quad building and the Technology Hub, both part of the Minster’s Centre for Excellence project, house skilled craftspeople employed to restore and maintain the medieval cathedral.
The Natural History Museum has been shortlisted for its reinvention of its grounds into a “living exhibition”, designed by Fielden Fowles, and Sadler’s Wells and the London Legacy Development Corporation have been recognised for O’Donnel + Tuomey’s east London outpost of the dance school and theatre in Stratford.
Other clients on the shortlist include Brighton College for the Richard Cairns Building, a sculptural performing arts teaching building designed by KRFT, and British Land for Norton Folgate, an office-led transformation of a group of derelict sites in Spitalfields designed by AHMM, Stanton Williams, Morris + Comapny and DSDHA.
The list is rounded off by Redruth Revival for the Buttermarket, an Architectural Thread-designed transformation of a butter market in Cornwall which has also been shortlisted for this year’s RIBA Stephen Lawrence Prize, Conservation Award and Reinvention Award.
Client of the Year Award jury chair Neil Gillespie, of Reiach and Hall Architects, described the six shortlisted clients as “remarkable”.
“[They are] Clients who, through their courage and vision, have played a central role in the creation of architecture that benefits users, local communities and visitors alike,” Gillespie said.
He added: ”From a school board which has consistently invested in high-quality design, a commercial developer who restored a historic part of London, to the keepers of a world-renowned cathedral embracing contemporary architecture, a community group revitalising a town centre, a museum that has opened up nature and learning beyond its walls, and a cultural institution helping shape a major new district, each client has demonstrated real ambition in bringing long-lasting value to the communities around them.”
The winner of the Client of the Year Award will be announced at the RIBA Stirling Prize ceremony on Thursday 15 October 2026 at Old Billingsgate in London.
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