Four awards for Barnsley at the 2026 South Yorkshire Property Awards

Barnsley is celebrating after taking home four prizes at the 2026 South Yorkshire Property Awards last week.

Hosted on Thursday 9 July at the Crowne Plaza Royal Victoria Hotel in Sheffield, the awards acknowledge the best completed projects, deals and industry individuals in the region.

The Seam Digital Campus was a double winner, scooping the Sustainability and Social Impact Award for phase one works which has sustainability at their heart, while phase two was successful in the Future Ambition category as an engaging and digitally-enabled site that will be the catalyst for further growth and innovation in the local and regional economy.

The Base71 Youth Zone was the winner in the Outstanding Development of the Year Award with the judges noting how the building’s design responded to a number of challenges arising from the site’s location, shape, level changes and ground contamination while also achieving a 300 per cent increase in site biodiversity.

Gateway 36, Health on the High Street and Barnsley College's University Centre as part of the South Yorkshire Institute of Technology were all nominated in the same category.

There was joy for Barnsley College in the Heritage Project of the Year category as judges noted how the University Centre, a building almost a century old, had gone from suffering high heat loss, inefficient gas heating and limited capacity for modern digital infrastructure to having all-electric services and an EPC A rating.

In addition, the challenges of hidden structural issues, legacy services and a live college environment were considered alongside the transformation of an underused open courtyard into a central enclosed atrium with a glazed roof and new mezzanine floors, creating a vibrant hub for study and collaboration.

Other nominations included Base71 for the Sustainability and Social Impact Award, the letting of a 266,044 sqft unit to Evri at Arrow Point for Property Deal of the Year, and the council's Executive Director for Place, Matt O'Neill, for the Property Personality of the Year.

Councillor Andy Cudworth, Cabinet spokesperson for Regeneration and Assets, said: "It was a fantastic evening and brilliant to see four awards make their way to Barnsley.

"For the borough to have 10 nominations on the night speaks volumes to the outstanding projects which are being delivered here and the pro-growth approach taken to drive forward our economy.

"A big thank you and well done must go to all of the council officers and our partners across the public and private sectors, who we have excellent relationships with. They have all contributed to help us secure these awards and nominations, which are deserved recognition for all their efforts."

For more information about the awards, go to the Insider Media website.