A new Special Educational Needs school in Letterkenny, Co Donegal, has been named Ireland’s favourite building by the Royal Institute of the Architects of Ireland (RIAI) in the public choice award category. The Little Angels School, designed by McGarry Ní Éanaigh Architects, is within a landscape of sensory gardens, trails and amenity areas. Aerial view of the Little Angels School in Letterkenny The school was designed for students with complex needs, requiring architects to navigate regulations, site challenges and varied human experiences. The project was described as “a masterclass in inclusive design”, providing a vibrant, intuitive new home for an established community of staff and students aged three to 18. Courtyard of Little Angels School, Letterkenny The school caters to pupils with moderate, severe, or profound learning disabilities, alongside students on the autism spectrum. Speaking of the winning entry, RIAI president Fionnuala May said the school had “transformed the lives of its students, staff and wider community, demonstrating the power of architecture to create meaningful and lasting change”. She said the school stood as a strong example of how architects were “catalysts in the delivery of the high-quality public infrastructure” needed by Ireland to meet “our social and economic ambitions in the decades ahead”. Runner-up, the new facade of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland on St Stephen's Green, Dublin The runner-up in the Public Choice Award was the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland’s (RSCI) Project Connect by Henry J Lyons. Lyons redefined the college’s facade and civic presence on Dublin’s St Stephen’s Green.The awarding body said the building balanced “bold contemporary architecture with sensitivity to its historic surroundings”.Third place went to the museum in Athy, Co Kildare, dedicated to the polar explorer Ernest Shackleton The Shackleton Experience in Athy, Co Kildare, dedicated to the polar explorer Ernest Shackleton, ranked in third place.The museum, with its striking protruding iceberg-like glass extension, transformed the protected structure into a “world-class visitor experience, boldly reimagining the building as a civic and cultural home for Ernest Shackleton’s legacy”, the RIAI said. The RIAI received 174 entries, with 44 projects shortlisted, including six international buildings from the US to Japan. All the entries can be viewed at riai.ie.The RIAI Irish Architecture Awards presentation will take place tomorrow evening at Merrion Cricket Club in Dublin 4, designed by 2022 RIAI winner Taka Architects, where the full list of winners across all categories will be announced.