Gold for Hayfield’s Southmoor development at the 2020 WhatHouse? Awards
Hayfield has won the top prize in the Best Public Realm category at the 2020 WhatHouse? Awards for its Hayfields development in the South Oxfordshire village of Southmoor. The Solihull-based company also won the Bronze Award in the Best Medium Housebuilder category, having been crowned Best Small Housebuilder last year.
The event dubbed ‘The Oscars of the Housebuilding Industry’ is in its 40th year. Rather than the usual 1,700 industry peers attending the event in person, comedian Romesh Ranganathan hosted a virtual Awards ceremony, alongside WhatHouse’s Editorial Director Rupert Bates. An interview with Stewart Baseley, Executive Chairman for the Home Builders Federation (HBF) kicked off proceedings, noting the unprecedented challenges faced by the industry during this extraordinary year.
Mark Booth, Managing Director of Hayfield said: “This year marks a big milestone for Hayfield, as we have been recognised as a leading medium housebuilder of note, despite the company only being four years old. This is the first year we have been eligible to enter this fiercely contested category, so we feel very honoured to have received such glowing praise from the judges.
“Winning the Gold prize for Best Public Realm for our Hayfields development in Oxfordshire is another huge accolade and we are delighted that the judges can fully appreciate all the special qualities and attention to detail that has gone into this £27m ecology-led scheme, which has delivered 74 outstanding new homes.
“Winning top national awards like this means everything in terms of credibility, raising awareness, installing confidence in purchasers, bidding for new sites and securing further investment. The double recognition at this year’s WhatHouse? Awards injects a sense of pride across the whole Hayfield team, because we all put our heart and soul into what we do. Thank you to all those that are part of Hayfield’s journey.”
The WhatHouse? Awards Judges Report for Best Medium Housebuilder said: “A step up in numbers, but no let-up in class and commitment from the Solihull-based housebuilder, which is still only four years old. Last year, Hayfield won gold in the Best Small Housebuilder category of the WhatHouse? Awards and continues to impress.”
The Judges Report for Hayfields in Southmoor said: “This is a deeply impressive template for establishing and delivering public realm in the confines of a new homes development, without vast acres and community assets to deploy. Hayfields is a £27m scheme on an 11-acre former hotel site in an Oxfordshire village. The 74 homes are part of an ‘ecology-led’ project, designed around Public Open Space, landscaped areas and biodiversity. Trees such as oak, blue cedar and giant sequoia were retained practically and aesthetically by Hayfield – not as the result of any Tree Preservation Orders – and the housebuilder appointed an arboricultural clerk of works.
“There is manicured, as well as natural elegance, to deliver a sense of place and arrival, as well as creating two new swales. The properties play their part emphatically, blending and interacting, with the street scenes every bit as important as the public realm. Pedestrians take priority as part of a ‘walkable new community’, while offsite contributions include a host of sports facilities in the area.”
Founded in 2016, Hayfield specialises in building luxury family houses and has eight live sites located in prime locations in Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire, Buckinghamshire and Wiltshire. Hayfield has 554 residential plots currently under construction.
Hayfield has won over its customers and the industry at large by putting quality and customer service at the heart of the business. Luxury specification comes as standard across its development portfolio, incorporating Minoli ceramic tiles, underfloor heating, Laufen bathrooms, Manor Interiors bespoke kitchens, Hammonds fitted wardrobes, heritage bronze ironmongery and Farrow & Ball paint.
