Alfred Gillet Trust wins AJ100 Client of the Year

From the outset, the Trust exemplified what every architect hopes for in a client, bringing strong values, thoughtful decision-making, and a deep respect for heritage and community.

Judges were impressed with the trust’s commitment, enterprise and sophisticated approach to sustainability at the museum, which combines new build with two listed buildings. This attitude included not hesitating to liquidate shares to fund a doubling of the PV array after energy modelling at Stage 4 showed that this would meet 100 per cent of the museum’s peak energy demands.

In the award submission, project lead Alasdair Ferguson said “Their approach to sustainability was the most sophisticated we have encountered in a client. No BREEAM target. No badge. Every pound spent had to deliver actual carbon reduction, actual performance, actual longevity. A more demanding brief than any checklist. Those same Quaker principles that shaped the trust’s founding shaped every material decision. Salvaging 70% of blue lias from the demolished link, specifying lime mortar throughout for future disassembly, sourcing brick locally from Gloucester and glulam from the UK’s only domestic supplier. Honest, considered, built to last.”

The award was announced at the 2026 AJ100 Awards, where Purcell was ranked 7 in the annual list of the biggest UK architectural practices for a second year in a row.