An ecological straw-clad building, social housing developments and the world’s first “vertical pier” are among the winners of the 2017 Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) awards.

A total of 49 winners have been selected as the UK’s best new buildings.

Among them are The Enterprise Centre in Norwich, an ecological office building, the Silchester housing development which is next to a railway viaduct in London, and the British Airways i360, a 162-metre observation tower on the seafront of Brighton.

The transformation of Leicester Cathedral, including the rediscovered tomb of Richard III (Leicester Cathedral’s Richard III project, With Dignity And Honour), is also a winner, alongside a striking new biomass power plant in Sheffield (Blackburn Meadows Biomass).

Other highlights include the Victoria Gate Arcades shopping centre in Leeds, Stoller Hall at Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester, Liverpool Philharmonic theatre and the Tate Modern Blavatnik Building (also known as Switch House).

Rockvilla, a workspace in Speirs Wharf, Glasgow, also scooped the accolade.

RIBA President Jane Duncan said: “Congratulations to the clients and their design teams for the extraordinary talent, ambition and enthusiasm that has led to this year’s roll-call of phenomenal buildings.”

Duncan said she was pleased to see “great examples of well designed, sustainable new homes” among the winners, as the lack of high-quality new housing is an issue in the UK.

The shortlist for the coveted RIBA Stirling Prize for the UK’s best building of the year will be drawn from the list of 49 RIBA National Award-winning projects.