McAleer & Rushe has achieved a notable double win at the prestigious Green Apple Environment Awards 2025, recognising the company’s exemplary commitment to sustainable development, environmental stewardship, and industry-leading best practice.
Competing against more than 1,000 nominations from around the world, McAleer & Rushe received both a Gold Environment Award for their Smugglers Way project and a Silver Environment Award for their Taxi House project. The awards were presented at a ceremony at the House of Lords, Westminster Palace, London, on 17 November 2025, hosted by Phil Williams.
These achievements highlight the company’s ongoing dedication to delivering projects that not only drive environmental improvement and carbon reduction, but also create lasting positive impact in the communities they serve.
Gold Award | Smugglers Way, Wandsworth
Category: Environmental Improvement
Commended by judges as “an exemplary model of environmental improvement within a major residential-led brownfield regeneration”, Smugglers Way has transformed a previously contaminated industrial site into a highly sustainable new neighbourhood within Wandsworth’s emerging New Acres district. Delivered for Legal & General, the development provides 554 homes across 13 buildings, complemented by landscaped communal spaces, roof gardens and new public amenities, all designed to BREEAM Excellent and Home Quality Mark 4 standards.
The project achieved outstanding carbon and resource efficiency outcomes. Residential carbon emissions were cut by 54% against the Part L baseline, while site-wide emissions fell by 45%, surpassing GLA targets. This was supported by a 100% renewable electricity supply, extensive HVO fuel trials, hybrid power systems, 3,000 tonnes of site-won material reused, and 99% diversion of construction waste from landfill, delivering substantial carbon and cost savings.
A standout success is the project’s independently verified 490% Biodiversity Net Gain, enabled by biodiverse roofs, native planting and a landscape-led regeneration strategy that transformed the site’s ecological value. Community creativity also played a significant role, with a collaboration with the Royal College of Art turning construction offcuts into public art, exhibitions and installations.
Smugglers Way now stands as a replicable model for inclusive, sustainable regeneration, demonstrating how innovative design, responsible construction and meaningful community partnerships can deliver long-lasting environmental improvement across the built environment.
Silver Award | Taxi House, Westbourne Park
Category: Carbon Reduction
Praised by judges for “redefining sustainable urban redevelopment”, Taxi House has transformed the former London Taxi Drivers’ Association HQ in Westbourne Park into a vibrant canalside destination. Delivered for Cheyne Capital, the scheme provides 332 modern serviced accommodation rooms, retail and commercial space, a wellness centre, and more than 15,000 sq ft of affordable workspace for local groups and businesses.
Guided by a fabric-first design approach, the project far exceeded regulatory carbon goals. Passive measures, high-performance materials and efficient air-to-water and air-to-air heat pumps enabled a 60% reduction in operational carbon emissions, double the Greater London Authority requirement. During construction, low-carbon practices such as post-tensioned concrete, recycled-content materials and canal barge deliveries cut transport emissions by 45% and diverted 99.8% of waste from landfill.
Designed to achieve BREEAM ‘Outstanding’, the project stands as a leading example of how early carbon leadership, collaborative design and responsible construction can deliver meaningful, long-lasting environmental and social value.
