2025 Sustainable Building Award national winner: Spey Building & Joinery Ltd

National winner: Spey Building & Joinery Ltd

Inspired by the Nordic tradition of remote summerhouses, huts and cabins, Spey Building & Joinery demonstrated how small, sustainable homes could be designed to suit Scotland’s remote and environmentally sensitive landscapes. The house’s design aims to meet the stringent RIBA 2030 Climate Challenge standards, and the remoteness and sensitivity of the site make this project unique, which influenced all aspects of design and construction.

The structure is constructed almost entirely from engineered timber, much of which was prefabricated off-site. Sustainable systems include a heat-recovery ventilation system, solar water heating panels, solar photovoltaic (PV) panels with battery storage, and a system for recycling heat from shower drains.

There were technical and physical challenges in trying to mitigate the environmental impacts during the construction and over the lifetime of the building. A mix of healthier wood fibre and mineral wool alternatives were needed for insulation materials to avoid high embodied-energy plastic insulation.

It was important for the team to regularly meet with all key stakeholders to manage progress. Builders temporarily stayed at a house nearby for up to two weeks at a time, which allowed them to integrate into the community and develop relationships with locals.

The client praised the team on a wonderful job, delivering a new build of the highest standard and quality. The team took the remote location of the site in their stride, and were not fazed by the tricky access, wind, rain, gales, ice and snow during the build process.