Social impact in Yorkshire and Humber: Spotlight on the projects making a difference

Every day, professionals across Yorkshire and Humber’s built environment sector help deliver projects that have a positive impact on the built and natural environment, people’s lives, and the whole of society.

Here, we’re spotlighting three inspirational projects from our region that have been recognised in the Social Impact category of the upcoming RICS Leeds and Humber Awards.

• OnSide Youth Zone in Grimsby
• The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease in Leeds
• HBC Construction Ltd with Hilltop School in Rotherham

Each project showcases how collaboration across the built environment can deliver meaningful and lasting benefits for local communities.

OnSide Youth Zone, Grimsby

Onside is a national charity that funds, builds and supports a network of modern youth centres, known as Youth Zones, nationwide. The newly developed Grimsby location opened its doors in February 2026. It will welcome around 4,000 young people from the area and create roughly 100 jobs and 70 volunteer positions.

Young people will benefit from facilities including a climbing wall, music room with recording studio, performing arts space, craft room, 3D printing equipment and kiln, a 3G kick pitch, boxing gym, sports hall, fitness suite, sensory room and hygiene suite. They will also be supported with local progression into employment and apprentice opportunities, offering a pathway into the construction industry.

The new development has an impressive Grade II listed exterior, with the middle section of the building sitting at the heart of the development, alongside the River Freshney. Despite the technical complexity of restoring and repurposing a Grade II listed building, the team successfully blended heritage preservation with modern functionality.

The result is a state-of-the-art facility that captures the historical character of West Haven Maltings and Migar House buildings, providing a modern, inspiring space for Grimsby’s young people.

Well done to construction firm Hobson & Porter Ltd for its significant role in the development.

The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease, Leeds

The Rob Burrow Centre for Motor Neurone Disease is a purpose‑built specialist healthcare and community facility, located at Seacroft Hospital in Leeds. It brings together clinical care, research, education and family support in one dedicated setting.

Funded by a £6.8m community‑led fundraising campaign, the project was shaped through extensive co‑design with clinicians, patients and families. It provides dignified, non‑clinical spaces alongside specialist healthcare facilities, supporting holistic care for people living with MND, creating a lasting legacy in honour of Rob Burrow.

This was a project of national significance, shaped by extraordinary community generosity and a collective commitment to improving the lives of people living with MND.

Delivering such a sensitive, high‑profile scheme required the highest levels of professional integrity, transparent governance, and genuine partnership with clinical teams, Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, Leeds Hospitals Charity and the MND Association.

Congratulations to Drees & Sommer UK, the RICS-regulated lead project manager and principal designer.

Hilltop School, Rotherham

Hilltop School in Rotherham is a Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) school supporting 180 children aged 2–19 with severe and complex learning difficulties. It is undergoing a £3 million pro‑bono transformation delivered through Yorkshire Children’s Charity’s Great Yorkshire Build initiative in partnership with Nexus Multi Academy Trust and more than 50 Yorkshire-based construction firms.

The project replaces cramped, temporary and inadequate buildings with modern, purpose‑built facilities designed to meet pupils’ complex learning, sensory and accessibility needs.

Phase one of the redevelopment – delivered by HBC Construction Limited (HBC) as main contractor – was completed in just 15 weeks and included extensive internal reconfiguration works. This involved demolition, new partition installations, and the removal of a steel frame over the school’s internal courtyard to reopen and re‑purpose vital internal areas.

These works created four new classrooms, staff facilities, WC and kitchenette areas, replacing ‘cupboard-sized’ teaching spaces that lacked natural light, running water and basic facilities.

HBC Construction Limited provided pro‑bono delivery of all main contractor duties – including preliminaries and site management – meaning the charity’s project costs were drastically reduced.

Combined with the wider supply chain’s contributions, more than £650,000 of additional value was unlocked, allowing more of the school’s urgently needed improvements to be delivered at pace. The project is an excellent example of collaboration and commitment to positive social impact.