De La Warr wins top award

BURA has unveiled the winners of its 2008 Awards for Best Practice in Regeneration.

This year saw five exemplary projects out of over 100 others make it through three rounds of rigorous assessment by a panel of experts drawn from all corners of the regeneration sector - including the DLWP.

These projects represent professionals and communities at the forefront of best practice, pushing innovative ideas and focused problem solving to effectively address the challenges that exist in the UK's town and cities today.

This is what BURA said about the DLWP:

''Sited on the East Sussex coast, this Grade 1 Listed, modernist entertainment venue has successfully identified and occupied a unique market position amongst neighbouring seaside towns.

After a major overhaul led by the De La Warr Charitable Trust and the architects John McAslan and Partners it is now one of the leading contemporary art centres in the South East region and brought an additional 16 million into the Bexhill economy in 2006/7.

It continues to promote the area as a unique visitor destination whilst building up a local following in its move to more accessible exhibitions, and with superb outreach and professional development programmes offered to the town's schools and creative workers.

Aside from the tangible benefits to the local economy, community and townscape, the De La Warr Pavilion brings vitality and life to Bexhill, a town which now gains strength from local distinctiveness in face of the challenges familiar to seaside towns across the UK.''