YORK Minster outshone heritage sites across the world to triumph at a prestigious ceremony celebrating innovative lighting design.

Lighting introduced in the cathedral’s nave and to its 15th century Kings Screen won Heritage Project of the Year at the Lighting Design Awards.

The minster beat off competition from Cathedrale Notre-Dame de Strasbourg in France and London’s Oxford Street, which were both shortlisted in the heritage project category.

The international awards celebrate creativity in the lighting industry from around the globe, with projects from 15 countries – from America to Iran - recognised and rewarded at the ceremony in London.

Mark Sutton Vane from Sutton Vane Associates, which designed and implemented the scheme in York, said: “The best lighting is often that which you don’t see, and this was particularly important at York Minster.

“For most people, the nave is the first thing you see when you enter the cathedral and we wanted to make sure the stunning architecture took centre stage. It is now possible to stand at the west end and not see a single light fitting and yet the Minster is beautifully and brightly lit.”

As well as improving lighting in the nave, the new scheme saves energy, requires less maintenance and is flexible to accommodate the range of services and events which take place in the Minster.

The improvement were part of the York Minster Revealed project, which ran between 2011 and 2015 and was part funded by the Heritage Lottery Fund.