New Wave House wins double at Wood Awards 2025

Adding flexible workspace to an industrial building, this resourceful rooftop extension – designed by Thomas McBrien Architects with New Wave London – has been named the winner of both the Commercial and Sustainability categories at the Wood Awards 2025.

New Wave House by Thomas Mc-Brien Architects with New Wave London. Photographs © Ståle Eriksen

Overlooking the city from a North London hillside, New Wave House demonstrates how timber construction combined with circular economy principles can deliver outstanding commercial architecture with minimal environmental impact, setting a new benchmark for urban development.

Expanding the overall floor area by 40%, the low-carbon extension prioritises resource efficiency and adaptive reuse at every stage. At the heart of the project is a lightweight, demountable Douglas fir glulam structure, designed to sit atop the existing building with minimal structural intervention.

From the timber frame to the freestanding furniture, each component was fabricated onsite in the contractor and client’s joinery workshop, reducing waste and transport emissions.

Insulated roof panels from the original building were repurposed for the new envelope, while additional timber, lime render, insulation and fixtures were salvaged from previous projects. All elements have been carefully composed to create a calm workspace, enriched by generous daylight and natural ventilation.

New Wave House was built by – and for – New Wave London, with wood supplied by PiveteauBois. Structural engineering was provided by LIM Engineering Ltd.

“This well-detailed rooftop extension is a good example of a simple but elegant solution,” said Jim Greaves, lead judge of the Wood Awards and Principal at Hopkins Architects.

“A carefully detailed wood frame creates a flexible, lightweight structure that sits above an existing concrete and masonry industrial building. The services are impressively coordinated and the whole building fits together beautifully, resulting in a sense of coherence and lightness.

“The project shows how reuse and circular economy principles can add genuine value to a commercial scheme.”

The Wood Awards building judges – a team of world-leading professionals – visited all 20 shortlisted buildings before selecting the winners, making this one of the UK’s most rigorous architecture competitions.

You can find out more about all the 2025 Wood Award winners at www.woodawards.com.