Youth cafe in Yate wins top design award

The Armadillo youth café, next to Yate Leisure Centre, only opened in June but has already impressed building experts on the judging panel of this year’s Local Authority Building Council.

The café, with its striking purple exterior and modern fittings, was named Best Community Building in the South West and the project board were handed a trophy at a gala dinner in Bristol.

Chairman of the youth café project board, town councillor Chris Willmore, told the Gazette: "It is a fantastic achievement. We took some of the youngsters who have been involved in the project since the start with us and they were absolutely thrilled to have won."

The £1.3million café, which has been built entirely from hemp instead of normal concrete, was also nominated in the Best Sustainable Development category.

The venue, which opens after school and at weekends and will stage gigs, open mic nights and other events, is a joint initiative between Yate Town Council and South Gloucestershire Council. It took 10 years of negotiations and research before the café was finally given the go-ahead in 2010.

Andy Metcalfe, director of contractors Speller Metcalfe, said: "We have been extremely impressed by the enthusiasm shown by the youth members of the steering and management group, who have shown great maturity throughout our dealings with the project.

"To see the excitement expressed on their faces when the Armadillo won the Best Community Building Award was a delight and we felt honoured to be part of their experience.

"After many years in the construction industry, it is easy to forget that the buildings we take for granted are for the end users, a culmination of many years of struggle to see their hopes become a reality, and it is a good grounding for us all to experience that level of commitment and enthusiasm."

The café beat off stiff competition including the new sports hall at Chipping Sodbury School, which was also nominated in the best community building category.