The self-build house in Catford, south London, was named overall winner of the AJ’s ‘best in low-cost design’ project prize at an event at the University of Liverpool School of Architecture’s new extension by O’Donnell + Tuomey on Thursday night (30 April).

The ‘terraced house in waiting’ was considered best in class among the 20 shortlisted projects costing up to £399,000 following a day of live judging, and announced as winner in front of 300 attendees.

Judges said the project, a family home for the practice’s director, addressed the issue of the national housing crisis and provided a blueprint for ‘addressing bigger issues about how a family could afford a house in London and that it creates a framework for doing so’.

Two projects received Highly Commended awards. They were Shine a Light on Wilcox Road by NOOMA Studio, which judges said was a ‘human project’ in Lambeth, south London, that had a strong community purpose and ‘shone a light’ on problems around high street decline and renewal.

‘Its more than what was represented and more than pink lampposts’, judges added, but an ‘urban design challenge that shows a way for future regeneration of the high street’, while using local people and maintaining a realistic budget.

The second Highly Commended award was handed to Culmore Fort by Mark Hackett Architect, a project that restored a 15th-century tower house at Culmore Point in Derry, Northern Ireland.

Judges highlighted the scheme for ‘enabling change of use’ in a  ‘sensitive and faithful’ way while ‘reusing local skills’ through the Northern Ireland’s Heritage Division.

The winner of the People’s Choice Award, voted by readers online and based on over 1,200 votes, was The Big Shed by KAST Architects with 31.4 per cent (395) of all votes. The scheme was the clear winner, with second place attracting 21.1 per cent (266).

This year’s ceremony, hosted within the landmark new building by O’Donnell + Tuomey at the University of Liverpool, was the debut public event at the newly revamped and extended architecture school. It was also the first time in the awards’ 31-year-history that they have taken place outside London.

The Irish practice’s three-storey extension and remodelling of the school’s existing accommodation, combines new studios, exhibition areas, teaching spaces, offices and a café, alongside the adaptation of its 1930s home.

The space will now showcase the awards’ shortlist of inventive, low-budget architecture through a month-long exhibition open to students and visitors.

The jury included the project architect behind Liverpool School of Architecture’s recently completed extension.

Willie Carey, director at the Irish practice O’Donnell + Tuomey and head of its Cork branch joined a panel which also featured Liverpool-founded shedkm’s Hazel Rounding, Marco Iuliano of the University of Liverpool – who devised and led the contest for the new building – and community-focused designer Lily Dowse of social enterprise PLACED.

The 20 shortlisted practices presented their projects to the jury in a live, crit-style session ahead of the awards ceremony. The session was open to university students, and this was followed by a closed deliberation, chaired by the AJ’s Fran Williams and Rob Wilson.

Now in its 31st year, AJ Small Projects 2026 received more than 170 entries, all now available in the recently relaunched AJ Buildings Library. From these, a shortlist of 20 standout projects was selected, spanning public realm schemes, studios and workshops, cafés, theatre lobbies, pavilions, community hubs and a series of inventive home extensions.

Each was completed for under £399,000. While that cap has risen over time, the awards’ purpose remains unchanged: to celebrate projects that achieve more with less through design excellence.

First launched in 1995 – when Anthony Grimshaw Associates won for the Garden Gazebo – the programme has become a platform for emerging practices. Previous winners, including Carmody Groarke and Haworth Tompkins, have gone on to achieve international recognition.

Last year’s 30th anniversary edition saw three joint winners: Material Cultures (with Central Saint Martins), OEB Architects and WonKy, recognised for their respective strengths in sustainability, social impact and material innovation.

Run in association with Marley, which has sponsored the awards for 15 years, AJ Small Projects continues to demonstrate that limited budgets can produce bold, impactful design.

The full shortlist is available online here.

O’Donnell + Tuomey’s new school of architecture at Liverpool University

Full list of past AJ Small Projects winners

  • 1999 Garden Gazebo by Anthony Grimshaw (£57,500) Read more here
  • 1997/1998 Princes Club Ski Tow Pavilion by Chris Wilkinson (£60,000) Read more here
  • 1999 Glover Flat by Wilkinson King (£43,000)
  • 2000 10 Market Stalls by Hawkins\Brown (£144,000)
  • 2001 Holland Park by Boyarsky Murphy Architects (£120,000)
  • 2002 London House by Simon Conder Associates (£98,500) Read more here
  • 2003 TFL International by Studio BAAD (£217,000)
  • 2004 Ola Mae Porch by Lucy Begg and Robie Gay (£3,600)
  • 2005 Bell-Simpson House by NORD Architects (£80,000)
  • 2006 Three Seton Mains by Paterson Architects (£200,000) Read more here
  • 2007 Wallace Road by Paul Archer Design (£250,000)
  • 2008 Japanese Tea House by Mole Architects (£7,000) Watch film here
  • 2009 Moonshine by Mitchell Taylor Workshop (£150,000) Read more here
  • 2010 The Dovecote Studio by Haworth Tompkins (£155,000) Read more here
  • 2011 Jellyfish Theatre by Koebberling and Kaltwasser (£17,000) Read more here
  • 2012 Old Workshop by Jack Woolley (£232,000) Read more here
  • 2013 Box House by Laura Dewe Mathews (£245,000) Read more here 
  • 2014 13 Wapping Pierhead by Chris Dyson Architects (£210,000) Read more here
  • 2015 Maggie’s Merseyside by Carmody Groarke (£217,000) Read more here
  • 2016 Contemporary lean-to by Doma Architects (£101,800), The Welcoming Shelter by Charlie Redman (£22,000), and Avon Wildlife Trust Cabin by Hugh Strange Architects (£32,000) Read more here
  • 2017 Croft Lodge Studio by Kate Darby Architects and David Connor Design (£160,000) Read more here
  • 2018 Wrong House by Matheson Whiteley Architects (£93,000) Read more here
  • 2019 Conservatory Room by David Leech Architects (£49,750) Read more here
  • 2020 House in North Wales by Martin Edwards Architects (£120,000) Read more here
  • 2021 Common Room by Rashid Ali Architects (£9,500) Read more here
  • 2022 Drovers’ Bough by Akin Studio (£70,200) Read more here
  • 2023 Adelaide Street by OGU Architects and MMAS (£340,000) Read more here
  • 2024 The Farmer’s Arms Cold Food Store by Hayatsu Architects and Grizedale Arts (£35,000) Read more here
  • 2025 Clearfell House by Material Cultures with Central Saint Martins, Lewisham Loggias by OEB Architects, and The Clearing by Wonky Read more here
  • 2026 Castlands Road by Bricolage

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