The Glade of Light memorial to the 22 victims of the Manchester Arena bombing has scooped a top national award.
The Civic Trust said the installation has 'become a significant place in the heart of Manchester for the personal and communal process of remembrance, grieving and healing. Judges praised the 'purity and simplicity' of the design's marble circle, saying it 'references the infinite and the eternal'.
The Manchester Evening News can reveal the memorial has won a community impact and engagement special award in the Civic Trust Awards 2023.
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Joanne Roney OBE, chief executive of Manchester City Council, said: "The Glade of Light memorial is a peaceful place for remembrance and reflection, both private and collective. I know that all those involved in this project, and who put so much care and love into it, were honoured to be working on the memorial and will be humbled that it has been recognised in this way."
Judges wrote of the design: "The names of the loved ones taken away have been inlaid in bronze within each unique block of marble. Nestled beneath the bronze hearts set around the circle are memory capsules, within which the bereaved families have left special memories, private messages and meaningful mementos.
"The abstracted design is ultimately an emotional as well as intellectual response to the ineffability of sorrow and loss."
The suicide bombing in May 2017 after an Ariana Grande concert at the Arena claimed 22 lives and left hundreds more people injured.
The Glade of Light, located between Manchester Cathedral and Chetham's School of Music, where Fennel Street meets Victoria Street, was conceived as a living memorial - a peaceful garden space for remembrance and reflection, featuring plants which grow naturally in the UK countryside selected to provide year-round colour and echo the changing seasons.
Around the anniversary of the bombing every year - May 22 - the white flowers of a hawthorn tree planted at its centre will bloom.
The memorial was unveiled by the Prince and Princess of Wales, William and Kate, in May last year to mark the fifth anniversary of the atrocity.
Prince William said in his speech: "I remember only too well the shock and grief on the faces of those I met when I visited Manchester in the days following the atrocity. And the rawness of emotion at the commemoration service, held at your Cathedral just here, a year later. Five years on I know that the pain and the trauma felt by many has not gone away.
"As someone who lives with his own grief, I also know that what often matters most to the bereaved is that those we have lost are not forgotten.
"I hope that this beautiful, tranquil space which, for all the challenges, I know many of you were involved in shaping, will provide all of this and more for generations to come."
The Civic Trust Award judges said of the Glade of Light: "The overall composition is exceptional with the landscaping and planting being a soft and responsive reflection of the existing public realm and surrounding environs."
They added that it was 'a quiet yet bold installation which is a serene and lasting reminder for Manchester of those killed and affected by the terrorist bomb'.
The award blurb states: "A grove of Oak, Birch, Hawthorn and Pine trees are gathered together around the quiet glade, providing a soft and green setting within the busy city, a place for people to escape the hustle and bustle of everyday life.
"Inclusivity has been embedded in all aspects of the design and construction process, working closely with representatives of the bereaved families, survivors, local stakeholders and a wider access working group to ensure input from a wide forum of interests.
"Seeing people returning on a regular basis to find a quiet moment in the glade and connect with its beneficial emotional and physical restorative powers has been an honour to witness."
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