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Southern Regional College's Estates team has been named Workplace and Estates Team of the Year at the 2026 Facilities Management Awards in Dublin, seeing off competition from some of the biggest organisations on the island of Ireland.
The team finished ahead of a strong field that included PayPal, NIE Networks and Maynooth University, as well as Macfar Property Management, Henderson Group Property, Hanley Energy, Casey Kennedy Estate Agents and the Reactive Maintenance Team.
The team is responsible for managing eight campus sites across the Newry, Mourne and Down District Council and Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon Borough Council areas. Four of the sites are situated in Newry city. Over the past year they have managed an annual budget of £7.8 million, delivering services within 1% of that allocation. Their responsibilities also include supporting the College's flagship Newry Innovation Centre, with construction for that project started this week.
Sustainability has been a significant focus for the team. Energy efficiency upgrades have resulted in a 23% reduction in scope 1 emissions compared to the 2016/17 baseline, while a 10,500m2 rewilding programme has been launched to restore natural habitats and enhance biodiversity.
Management Awards in Dublin were members of SRC’s Estates Team. Included
from left: Chris Chambers (Estates Technician), Eamon Quinn (Estates Manager),
Philip Kenwell (Estates Manager), Gary Young (Head of Estates), Sarah Burns (
Health Safety and Environmental Officer), Sharon O’Hare (Estates Quality and
Business Process Manager) and Peter Monaghan (BIM Manager)
A notable aspect of the team's achievements is that much of the work has been delivered without additional project funding, instead drawing on existing in-house expertise. The team developed a Caretaker Digital Logbook, a mobile app used to manage estate inspections, and initiated a Digital Shadow project which integrates multiple data sources into a single user interface, providing analysis and insights for both estates staff and external maintenance contractors.
Beyond their own campuses, the team has also contributed to regional collaboration groups and provided expertise on external projects covering digital construction, sustainability and asset management.
Mrs Lee Campbell, Principal and Chief Executive of Southern Regional College, said: "This award represents the professionalism, innovation and sheer commitment of our Estates Team. They have not only delivered exceptional services across all our campuses, but have done so while driving real change, embracing digital transformation, improving sustainability, and consistently finding smarter ways to work."
