CIHT North East & Cumbria hosted their annual Awards Dinner on Thursday, 8 October which turned out to be a fantastic evening, celebrating excellence and showcasing the breadth of work going on in the region.

The Awards Dinner was held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Newcastle, and saw a wide range of organisations represented, from local authorities, to consultancies and beyond.

The night was opened by CIHT North East & Cumbria Chair, Grace Smith who thanked attendees for their longstanding commitment to improving the sector, swiftly followed by a speech from Kate Carpenter, President of CIHT, highlighting the impressive award entries from across the sector, showcasing the innovation, collaboration and professionalism that define North East & Cumbria. 

After dinner, onto the main event of the night - announcing the winners:

Best Large Project Award:

Winner - Keel Crossing - submitted by Sunderland City Council, VolkerStevin, Arup & Knight Architects
Highly Commended - Darlington Station Redevelopment - submitted by Tees Valley Combined Authority

Best Small Project Award:

Winner - Gateshead Viaduct - submitted by Gateshead Council and Partners
Highly Commended – B6343 Mitford Improvements - submitted by Northumberland County Council, BAM and Cundall

Collaboration Award:

Winner - Gaunless Bridge - submitted by AtkinsRealis and Durham City Council
Highly Commended – B6343 Mitford Improvements - submitted by Northumberland County Council, BAM and Cundall

The John Jeffrey Emerging Professional of the Year Award:

Winner - Josh Hawkins, Milestone Transport Planning Ltd
Winner - Michael Richardson, Tees Valley Combined Authority
Highly Commended - Liam Blatch, Jacobs
Highly Commended - Charles Rowe, AtkinsRealis
Highly Commended - Daniel Nicholson, Cundall

After the Awards ceremony, we heard from Jon Niblo, CEO of the Dinner's chosen charity partner, NE Youth, whose mission is to provide a high quality, diverse and positive youth offer in the North East through their own services and by providing their members with relevant information, advice and support.

CIHT North East & Cumbria was proud to have been able to contribute to these efforts through donations and an exciting raffle during the Awards dinner - over £5,700 were raised for the charity on the night and through CIHT North & East and Cumbria's recent coast-to-coast charity cycle event.

In line with the dinner's theme of James Bond, attendees got to enjoy casino-themed games and show their competitive sides!

Thank you to the event's sponsors, WSP, Waterman Aspen and Morgan Consult & Advisory.

Once again, we would like to thank everyone for their participation, whether it was by submitting an entry or attending on the night. We look forward to next year's celebrations already.

Photographs by Gavin Thompson