AN ARCHITECTURE student from Halstead was awarded a prize for excellence by the Royal Institute of British Architects. 

Ben Nourse, a student at the University of Kent's School of Architecture, won the Degree Prize for his piece 'urban stages'.

The 21-year-old impressed judges with his project to regenerate Sheerness through a fair which features the town's Victorian heyday. 

Ben envisaged the fair as a series of ‘urban stages’ featuring ordinary buildings – some real, some not. 

He said: "These are covered in fantastical, ever-changing facades that draw on the most hedonistic and prosperous time of the town.

"There is very little to do, for young people in particular. The fair proposes an arrangement of ordinary buildings with the appearance of a town, which is far more fun than reality and explores the retrofication of 1960s Victoriana.

"People go on a journey through what is and is not real, until they look back across the site from the pier with clear view and a plate full of fish and chips."

The Prize was awarded at Kent School of Architecture’s End of Year Show.

He received his Prize from Mayler Colloton, Vice Chair of RIBA Canterbury & District Branch. 

The Prize, which celebrates the talent of architecture students at the University, is awarded by the two Kent-based RIBA Branches that represent more than 600 architects across the county. 

Ben received a certificate and a cheque for £200.