For organisations seeking a high-calibre commercial painting contractor for their next refurbishment, heritage restoration, or new-build project, trust is key. Businesses value independent, verifiable proof of capability, consistency, and craftsmanship.
At Davison Solutions, we have honed our painting and decorating expertise across the UK, delivering transformative results in the most demanding environments, from Grade II listed buildings to state-of-the-art hospitality venues.
While the satisfaction of our clients is our ultimate reward, nothing reinforces our credentials quite like national industry recognition. Our consistent success in the most prestigious national painting and decorating awards provides the independent assurance that prospective clients need.
This blog post delves into multiple accolades, showcasing the breadth and consistency of our award-winning workmanship and reinforcing our position as one of the UK’s top commercial painting and decorating contractors.
Why painting and decorating awards matter
Before diving into the projects, it’s important to understand the significance of the awards we have achieved. Our accolades come from two of the most respected bodies in the UK’s painting and decorating industry.
1. The Painting & Decorating Association (PDA) Premier Trophy Awards
These industry awards represent the pinnacle of excellence. The Painting & Decorating Association (PDA) is an independent, industry-recognised body that champions quality and professional standards across the UK.
Entries are judged by a panel of industry experts who scrutinise the complexity of the project, the quality of preparation, the mastery of specialist techniques, and the overall finish. Achieving a Commended, Highly Commended, or Very Highly Commended distinction in these awards signifies that the project is considered an exemplar of British craftsmanship.
2. Johnstone’s Painter of the Year Awards
The Johnstone’s Painter of the Year Awards are also prestigious, focusing on how a contractor handles challenging projects using their range of high-performance coatings and systems. Recognising sector-specific expertise, these awards celebrate excellence in categories like Commercial, Residential, Restoration, and Hospitality & Leisure.
To be named a Finalist or, even better, a Winner, means that a project demonstrated exceptional technical skill, meticulous planning, and an unparalleled finish, often overcoming significant logistical or technical hurdles. It’s a testament to the fact that Davison Solutions’ quality is benchmarked at a national level.
A decade of recognised excellence
Our commitment to craftsmanship is a consistent practice demonstrated over many years. The following timeline of awards summarises our history of industry recognition, illustrating our versatility across diverse sectors, including heritage restoration, hospitality and leisure refurbishment projects, high-end residential, and large-scale commercial developments.
| Award Body | Year | Project Name | Recognition Level | Sector Focus |
| PDA | 2025 | The Story, Durham | Highly Commended | Cultural/Leisure |
| Johnstone’s | 2024 | The Story, Durham | Hospitality, Leisure & Retail Finalist | Cultural/Leisure |
| PDA | 2024 | Tynemouth Castle Inn | Highly Commended | Hospitality |
| Johnstone’s | 2023 | Tynemouth Castle Inn | Hospitality, Leisure & Retail Finalist | Hospitality |
| PDA | 2023 | Sunningdale SEN Schools | Highly Commended | Education/Civic |
| PDA | 2022 | Hard Rock Café, Newcastle | Commended | Retail/Hospitality |
| Johnstone’s | 2021 | Hard Rock Café | Hospitality & Leisure Finalist | Retail/Hospitality |
| Johnstone’s | 2021 | Claremont House, Newcastle | Residential Finalist | High-End Residential |
| Johnstone’s | 2020 | Royal Middlehaven House, Middlesbrough | Commercial Winner | Commercial/Civic |
| PDA | 2018 | The Towers, Jesmond | Very Highly Commended | Heritage/Residential |
| Johnstone’s | 2017 | The Towers, Jesmond | Restoration Finalist | Heritage/Residential |
This broad spectrum of achievements confirms our capability as comprehensive commercial painting contractors capable of tackling projects of any scale, complexity, or sensitivity.
The projects that define us
To truly understand what makes us an award-winning specialist painting contractor, we’re showcasing a selection of our award-winning projects and how we approached expert techniques, challenges, and delivered stand-out solutions on-site.
1. The Story, Durham
The Story, Durham’s spectacular new history centre, repurposed a Grade II Listed building into a state-of-the-art public facility. This significant community project demanded absolute precision and respect for heritage features alongside the flawless application of modern commercial finishes.
The complexity lay in integrating contemporary finishes into a heritage building, requiring sophisticated surface preparation and the use of specialist, durable coatings for high-traffic public areas. This project showcases our mastery in delivering large-scale, complex civic and cultural refurbishments, a prime example of our specialist painting contractors at work.
2. Tynemouth Castle Inn
The refurbishment of the iconic Tynemouth Castle Inn was an ambitious, time-critical project to revitalise a prominent 1930s Art Deco building with commanding views over Longsands Beach. Our brief from The Inn Collection Group required a complete, high-quality overhaul of the entire venue, both internal and external, within an extremely tight deadline to ensure the venue could open in time for the crucial festive trading period.
The existing coatings on the stonework had to be carefully and sympathetically stripped back using a chemical solution to fully restore the historic façade. We then applied new protective, weather-resistant coatings, specifically selected to defend the building against the harsh coastal elements for years to come.
3. Jesmond Towers, Newcastle
As heritage restoration decorators working on a Grade II Listed residential building, the work required delicate, faithful replication of historical finishes, intricate plasterwork restoration, and the sympathetic use of specialist materials.
It was recognised with a Very Highly Commended distinction at the PDA Premier Trophy Awards 2018 and a Restoration Finalist place at the Johnstone’s Awards 2017. This dual recognition proves our exceptional competence in preserving the North East’s architectural past while ensuring structures are ready for a modern future.
4. Hard Rock Café, Newcastle
The refurbishment of the iconic Hard Rock Café demanded a flawless, high-impact finish delivered under tight commercial deadlines. Securing two industry-recognised painting and decorating awards for this project highlights our ability to manage high-profile retail and leisure environments where the visual impact is critical to brand identity and customer experience. It required complex colour-matching, durable finishes for high-traffic zones, and meticulous execution around irreplaceable artefacts and displays.
5. Royal Middlehaven House, Middlesbrough
The sheer scale and technical demand of the commercial refurbishment at Royal Middlehaven House led to us being named the Johnstone’s Commercial Winner 2020. This significant civic project involved transforming a large-scale commercial building into modern office and public spaces. The award specifically celebrates our ability to deliver technical excellence and outstanding project management on major commercial contracts, reinforcing our credentials as trusted commercial decorators.
6. Claremont House, Newcastle
While we’re renowned for large-scale commercial decorating contracts, our expertise extends into the high-end residential market, where meticulous detail is non-negotiable. Our project at Claremont House in central Newcastle earned us a Residential Finalist place at the Johnstone’s Painter of the Year Awards 2021, showcasing our precision in luxury finishes.
For this private client, we decorated prestigious apartments suitable for long-term rent. The project’s success hinged on respecting the building’s inherent character; the existing structure featured beautiful original architectural details and features which were to be preserved and celebrated throughout the design.
We worked in close collaboration with Design_North, ensuring our application of interior finishes perfectly aligned with their design concepts and space planning. The apartments were split into three distinct styles, each demanding an individual aesthetic and exceptional versatility from our team.
Our role required carefully preparing surfaces to enhance preserved features like cornices and panelling, while applying durable, high-specification paints.
Work with us
The journey to becoming an award-winning commercial painting contractor is paved with dedication, relentless training, and a refusal to compromise on the smallest detail. These projects are markers of the craftsmanship, attention to detail, and professional integrity that our team brings to every single contract.
If you are an organisation seeking a vetted contractor whose quality is independently verified by the industry’s top bodies, look no further.
To discuss your upcoming commercial painting and decorating project, whether it involves heritage restoration or a large-scale commercial fit-out, please contact us today. We are ready to make your next project our next award-winner.
