AN 'EXTRAORDINARY' piece of North Yorkshire architecture has scooped a prestigious award.

Rievaulx Abbey Visitor Centre and Museum, near Helmsley has been awarded one of the Royal Institute of British Architects’ (RIBA) Regional Awards for Yorkshire.

Rievaulx was one of nine of 13 of those included in the RIBA Regional Awards which will now be considered for the highly-coveted RIBA National Award.

The new Visitor Centre, which includes café, retail and exhibition space, and the Museum, benefited from a £1.9m investment and opened to visitors in summer 2016.

Architects Simpson & Brown, who are previous holders of the RIBA Regional Awards, were appointed by English Heritage.

The awards were announced at a ceremony held in Hull where Rievaulx’s architecture was cited as ‘a truly extraordinary piece of architecture'.

Andrea Selley, historic properties director at English Heritage North said: “This is fantastic news and we are delighted to be among the winners of this prominent award.

"Rievaulx additionally provides a stunning backdrop for events, and these facilities now allow us the opportunity to provide the appropriate hospitality and space to welcome visitors.

"We are about to celebrate 100 years of Rievaulx Abbey under our care, and it seems fitting that this announcement comes at the same juncture as this celebration. "This is a superb site that merits these award winning visitor facilities and museum.”