Millers Quay wins top prize at the 2025 Housing Design Awards.
Millers Quay, the flagship residential scheme at Wirral Waters, has been awarded the Completed Scheme Award at the 2025 Housing Design Awards (HDA) — one of the UK’s most respected accolades for housing and placemaking.
Delivered by waterside regeneration specialists Peel Waters in partnership with Pension Insurance Corporation and Wirral Council, Millers Quay represents the first major residential development within the Wirral Waters regeneration masterplan. Designed by architects Howells, the £130m scheme has transformed a once disused dockside into a vibrant new waterside community of 500 one- and two-bedroom apartments.
Celebrated for its striking architecture, colourful façades, and unique waterside silhouette, Millers Quay has set a new benchmark for residential design in the Liverpool City Region, while staying true to its brief of creating “a new picture postcard for Wirral.”
Richard Mawdsley, Director of Development at Wirral Waters, commented: “Millers Quay was always about creating a new picture postcard for Wirral, homes that celebrate our heritage whilst creating a great place for our residents. The team at Howells understood our vision and masterplan from the start and have worked in partnership with us from initial design concepts right through to the completion of this amazing development. Huge credit to the whole team but especially to urban designers Parkinson Inc, GRAHAMs our funding partners Pension Insurance Corporation, and of course to Wirral Council. To see all the hard work recognised with this award is fantastic for everyone involved.”
Alan McCartney, Partner at Howells, added: “We’re delighted that Millers Quay has been recognised with a Housing Design Award. As the first residential phase of the Wirral Waters regeneration masterplan, these new homes show what’s possible when visionary public–private partnerships — including Homes England, Peel, Wirral Council and PIC — come together to deliver real, lasting change.
“Designed by Howells, the architecture of Millers Quay combines colour, confidence and scale with thoughtful detailing throughout the well-designed homes, all which feature waterside views, well-composed façades and high-quality materials. The result is a vibrant new community that transforms a post-industrial dockside into a welcoming, sustainable neighbourhood with a strong sense of place.”
Leader of Wirral Council, Cllr Paula Basnett, said: “In Millers Quay, we have one of the best landmark buildings in the whole of Wirral. It shows what can be accomplished when partners come together with an ambitious vision for our place and our people.
“This award is a fantastic achievement for Wirral Waters, the Howells team and all the parties involved. It’s another acknowledgement of the excellence of this development, that is providing affordable, high quality homes to our residents as well as helping to drive investment and job creation and build the future of Birkenhead.”
The win underlines the national significance of Millers Quay, both as a design-led residential scheme and as a catalyst for the wider Wirral Waters masterplan — one of the UK’s most exciting regeneration projects.
Judges comments and video here: https://hdawards.org/scheme/47135_scheme/
