Top architectural award for County Derry church restoration

placeholder image — St Mary's church, Lavey.

Omagh-based Woodvale Construction collected the award for the work.

A County Derry church which recently underwent major restoration work has won a prestigious architectural award.

St Mary's Church in Lavey beat off stiff competition from Carrickfergus Castle, Grand Opera House and the North West Transport Hub to win the 2021 Restoration Award at the CEF Excellence Awards.

The award was presented to Omagh-based Woodvale Construction Company, the contractor which completed the work on the church building.

The winning project made a huge impression on the judges for its attention to detail, which seen Woodvale meticulously restore St. Mary’s Chapel to its former glory with time-honoured traditional skills and craftsmanship.

The result is so successful that the judges agreed it is 'difficult to tell the new from the old in the competed building', concluding that Woodvale Construction delivered a project of the highest quality that enhances both the church and the local community.

Congratulating the Lavey Parish Building Committee for winning the award local Councillor Sean McPeake said: “I wish to warmly congratulate Father Eamon Graham and the Lavey Parish Building Committee for so meticulously overseeing the exceptionally high standard of building preservation and workmanship that has taken place with the refurbishment of St Mary’s Chapel.

“Preserving the fabric of the existing building materials whilst upgrading and future-proofing the Church it for its use for future generations is a delicate balance to achieve and to which in this instance the Parish Building Committee has very successfully done.

“The winning of this prestigious architectural accolade is testimony to that.”

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