Praise for chapel renovation

THE SYMPATHETIC renovation of a small island chapel in Shetland has been shortlisted for a national architecture prize.

 Muckle Roe Chapel is one of six projects in the running for the Alterations, Renovation and Extensions category of the 2016 Saltire Society Housing Design Awards.

Owners Bogi Vang, from Faroe but living and working in Aberdeen, and his wife Senga, who is from Muckle Roe, bought the disused chapel in 2012 to convert into a home for when they visit Shetland.

Vang praised Nick Brett of Richard Gibson Architects for his input in extending and converting the century-old building.

“Being shortlisted for the prize came as quite a surprise but at the same time we feel very honoured,” Vang said on Wednesday.

When not being used by the couple, Muckle Roe Chapel is available as self-catering accommodation with three bedrooms.

The building is described as having undergone “a sympathetic extension and renovation to increase the floor area and create a contemporary and simplistic living space with light airy spaces and breath-taking views of the sea and landscape”.

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The shortlisted buildings in this category are:

• Blakeburn Cottage, Roxburghshire, a complete overhaul of a nondescript mid-twentieth century dwelling to create an elegant rural home;
• Saltcoats Steading, East Lothian, an extension to Saltcoats Farm Steading;
• Sunken Extension, Edinburgh, a complex extension to a Grade B listed Georgian house;
• Solen Vinklar, Edinburgh, a unique project to create a new cooking: eating: living space and first floor bedroom suite;
• East Claremont Street, Edinburgh, an innovative ‘glass box’ extension and remodelling of ground floor rooms to create a new kitchen and dining space in a Category B listed early Victorian townhouse.

The winner in this and four further categories will be announced during the awards ceremony on 30 June at the Edinburgh Centre for Carbon Innovation.

For further information on this year’s awards including a full list of this year’s judging panel please visit: http://www.saltiresociety.org.uk/awards/architecture/housing-design/judging-panel/