Gold and silver awards for renovation of historic Kirkcaldy landmark

Fife-based Kingdom Housing Association’s work on Hunter House was honoured at the 2022 Green Apple Environment Excellence Awards.

The Category B listed building in the town centre was the Hunter Hospital up until the early 1990s.

The sympathetic conversion of Hunter House, originally known as St Brycedale House and dating back to 1785, protected many of the internal features including the entrance hall, staircase and principal oval rooms.

It is now it is a residential complex with affordable housing.

Kingdom took gold in the listed building and heritage project and refurbishment categories, and silver in the residential category.

Bill Banks, Kingdom Group chief executive, said ‘’The redevelopment of Hunter House will ensure the longevity of a classic building in Kirkcaldy town centre, through providing additional affordable housing to help support the Rapid Rehousing Strategy in Fife.”

He added: “It was fantastic to collect these awards.

“We have a long track record of working collaboratively with others and the Hunter House project would not have been possible without the input from staff and the support from many partners .”

The redevelopment project cost over £880,000, and the Scottish Government and Fife Council provided around £400,000 in subsidy.

Julie Watson, Kingdom’s head of capital investment, said, “The project was challenging at times, however it was also rewarding and I’m delighted that our renovation work has been recognised.

“This iconic building has had several custodians over the years and I’m really pleased that we have been able to restore and improve it to make additional affordable housing available in this unique building.”

She added, “In recent years it has been difficult to find a use for this listed building, and there have been various short term lease occupiers, or it has been unoccupied.

“After extensive consultation with the local community I’m very happy that future residents will be able to enjoy the stunning interior features for many years to come.”

The Green Apple Awards began in 1994 and have become established as the country’s major recognition for environmental endeavour among companies, councils, communities and countries.