A historic home in Dorset has won a national award for its transformation into becoming carbon-neutral.

The UK’s most outstanding recent building projects went head-to-head for top national accolades at the Royal Institution for Chartered Surveyors (RICS) Awards grand final last night - where Puddletown’s Athelhampton House was given the top prize in the environmental impact category.

Athelhampton House, a Grade I Listed Building and Tudor Manor estate, was consuming £55,000 of energy in 2019, which would have only increased in the following years.

Dorchester-based chartered architects and surveyors SPASE Design led a team to install a carbon-neutral scheme to run the estate.

This included a new electricity network with solar panels, ground-source heat pumps, air-source heat pumps and Tesla batteries.

READ MORE: 400 solar panels at Athelhampton House

Athelhampton now saves 100 tonnes of carbon annually and has a nominal energy bill of £500 annually, with fossil fuels removed from the site.

The building dates from the 15th century and sits in grounds spread out over 29 acres.

The Tudor manor house was built in 1485 during the reign of Henry VII by Sir William Martyn, who was the Lord Mayor of London.

In Victorian times, Thomas Hardy initially worked on it as a stonemason while apprenticed to an architect.

The house, which has 50 rooms, was mentioned in the Doomsday Book and also inspired the setting of Thomas Hardy's classic novel Far From the Madding Crowd.

For the last 60 years, it has been owned by the Cooke family with three generations of the family building on and enhancing the legacy of the historic home.

The house regularly hosts events including weddings and school proms. A movie starring the late Dame Maggie Smith was also shot at the house in October 2008.

Judges at the awards said of Athelhampton: “This exceptional project has set a new benchmark in sustainable heritage conservation.

"The RICS-regulated practice engaged by the client worked closely with specialist installers and heritage bodies to address numerous challenges.

"Utilising two solar arrays, 12 Tesla batteries, four ground source and 15 air source heat pumps, all sensitively integrated into the historic estate, protecting its 500-year-old Listed Buildings and landscape.

“The result is a property that has saved over 100 tonnes of carbon emissions annually and reduced energy costs from six figures to just almost nothing.

"This project proves that even the most historically significant properties can embrace sustainability, offering a robust model for future heritage projects through innovation, collaboration, and careful conservation of valuable cultural assets."

The annual event, hosted by architectural and interior designer Oliver Heath, was held at the Park Plaza Riverbank, London on Friday, October 4.