THE Royal Mail terminal in Dallam has been named Warrington's 'best building of the past 20 years'.

It was singled out for praise in the revised and updated Buildings of England architecture guide - which is regarded as the architect's bible.

The building was completed in 1997 and is a 5,000sqm distribution centre.

The guide says it makes virtues of the scale and simplicity of such large warehouses.

It says: "It has a marvellously dramatic form, wrapped in a single silvery-sealed aluminium skin that sweeps to the ground, curling in on itself into a semi-circle.

"Celebrating scale, expressing function and exploiting the repetition of standard utilitarian components with panache, it is a worthy heir to the 19th century functional tradition.

"A shame it is so obscurely located."

A Royal Mail spokesman said: "Royal Mail's purpose built rail terminal at Warrington won the RIBA Award for Architecture in 1998 and is a key strategic hub for transferring both rail and road borne traffic to all areas of the UK.

"Every day there are around 250 vehicles entering and leaving the terminal, with more than 5.2 million items a day passing through the site."

Click here to find out what other Warrington buildings were mentioned in the Buildings of England architecture guide.

l What do you think? Is there a more aesthetically pleasing building, built within the past 20 years, then the Royal Mail terminal? Let us know by e-mailing us at newsdesk@guardiangrp.co.uk