It has emerged that the Civic Trust awards will continue. The move follows the demise of the Civic Trust which went into administration in April after losing a £2.2 million government contract for the Green Flag awards. Malcolm Hankey, former built environment manager at the trust, has successfully negotiated the release of the awards from the administrators to secure their future. The scheme will continue to operate independently and will be registered as a community interest company. The transfer of the awards also includes a commitment to preserve the 50-year archive of past winners, which forms the basis of the Built Environment Network, a web based information resource for schools, higher education, built environment practitioners and the general public.

The awards were launched in 1959 to recognise the very best in architecture, urban design, landscape and public art. They are given to projects of the highest design quality, but only if they are judged to have made a positive contribution to the local environment. The next application round will open in August.

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