2026 Urbanism Awards finalists announced

Last night, at the AoU's Shaping a Collective Focus event, held in Dublin, Edinburgh, and London, we launched this year's Urbanism Awards finalists.

This follows a public call for nominations over the winter and shortlisting discussions attended by Academician and Young Urbanist members of the AoU, summarised below. Over the summer, in-person assessment visits will run to each shortlisted place, open to AoU members.

For the list of confirmed assessment dates, visit our Events Directory, or click on any red text below. As more dates are announced for other finalist visits, these will be shared via the AoU's newsletter.

Great Streets + Spaces finalists

Fort William High Street is a remarkable transformation of a neglected Scottish high street into a thriving destination, proving that curated, people-first placemaking can succeed anywhere.

Stretford Kingsway is an outstanding active travel scheme that converted a hostile dual carriageway into a welcoming, walkable gateway - creating genuine place where none existed before.

Woolwich Town Centre is a genuinely inclusive regeneration of a deprived London neighbourhood, sensitively improving a chaotic market space into a flexible, welcoming public realm for all.

Great Neighbourhood finalists

Cloughjordan Ecovillage is a pioneering Irish co-housing community offering a bold, bottom-up model of sustainable, collaboratively designed living that demonstrates an inspiring and replicable alternative to conventional residential development.

NOMA is a newly regenerated Manchester neighbourhood successfully weaving residential, heritage and diverse activities together, with an innovative focus on measuring social value in an institutionally backed, mixed-use development.

Pullens + Newington Estates form a remarkable pocket of Londoner resilience - Victorian tenements and post-war housing coexisting beautifully amid surrounding hyperdevelopment, championing the enduring value of small-scale, complex, mixed communities.

Great Town / Small City finalists

Ashbourne is a remarkable post-Covid revival driven by exemplary multi-stakeholder partnership, substantial Levelling Up funding, and bold traffic and town centre improvements that showcase effective small-town governance.

Gainsborough is a compelling regeneration success story, reversing decades of decline through determined leadership, coherent strategy, vibrant waterfront renewal, and forward-thinking economic planning including proximity to a pioneering nuclear fusion facility.

Perth is a resilient Scottish city successfully blending sustainability ambitions, circular economy principles, and a thriving Love Local brand to attract tourism and entrepreneurship despite significant economic headwinds.

European City of the Year

Groningen is a standout Dutch city showcasing exemplary housing innovation, sustainable urban logistics, and world-class cycling infrastructure, offering valuable lessons in progressive, high-quality northern European urbanism.

Prato is a remarkable Italian city successfully blending circular economy principles, textile manufacturing heritage, multicultural integration, and community-led regeneration into a uniquely compelling and scalable urban model.

Tirana impresses with its pioneering child-centred approach to urbanism, incremental tactical improvements, and inclusive public spaces that are transforming city life in inspiring ways.

"The Urbanism Awards are a core part of the AoU experience and a great way to get to know fellow members and learn from place"

All twelve finalists will be assessed by panels of AoU members on in-person visits throughout the summer. Subsequently reports will be compiled and used for voting in the autumn. To join an assessment visit click here, or to find out more about getting involved in the Urbanism Awards this year, contact Connie at [email protected]

Image credits:

Ashbourne - photo courtesy of Ashbourne Town Team
Cloughjordan Ecovillage - photo courtesy of Sustainable Projects Ireland Ltd (SPIL)
Fort William High Street - photo courtesy of BID Fort William
Gainsborough - photo courtesy of West Lindsey District Council
Groningen - photo by Nirmal Suresh via Unsplash
NOMA - photo courtesy of Federated Hermes
Perth - photo courtesy of Perth & Kinross Council © Greg Holmes
Prato - photo by Peter Stenzel via Flickr
Pullens + Newington Estates - photo by Tim Frost via Flickr
Stretford Kingsway - photo courtesy of CIVIC
Tirana - photo by Mario Beqollari via Unsplash
Woolwich Town Centre - photo courtesy of LDA Design © Neil Speakman