The largest social infrastructure project procured in Belgium, this project covers 15hectares of land and 14 separate units, including an entrance complex, extensive on-site facilities and new court houses for the Ministry of Justice. In a break with traditional prison building, this scheme focused on developing a rehabilitation facility in the vision of a ‘Prison Village’, encouraging residents to act and engage within a social environment. Situated across three regional authorities, the chosen location of the new Haren prison required significant levels of stakeholder engagement and management,

as well as multiple approval processes. A unique hybrid financing structure was used to provide value for money for the public sector.

The judges were impressed by the way in which the team had overcome a number of challenges on this project to deliver a scheme that provided good value for money and remained flexible throughout the project’s development. They were also keen to reward the scheme’s novel approach to delivering prison services.