House on the lane

The family had prepared a detailed wish list for their home over a number of years.

The house was built facing north onto a busy road. The rooms were modest in size and divided. This made it hard to spend time together and entertain large numbers. The garden was already beautifully laid out but separate from the house and could only be enjoyed from an old timber lean-to that was in much need of repair.

The family’s main request was to include a generous, comfortable family kitchen-dining-living space with better access and views over the south-facing garden. Also, Mum needed her own space for her work as a freelance artist during the day. Dad wanted a new kitchen and more space for the extended family to visit. The family also needed storage space, new bathrooms, and a general refresh of all the interiors. Finally, we were asked to investigate future-proofing the design to accommodate them in later life.

The first step of the design was to flip the house's orientation by creating a new single-story extension and opening up the ground floor with extended views through to the outdoors. The new extension is arranged to address the boundary wall and provide an uninterrupted view of the existing mature trees, the lawn, and the garden studio beyond. The living room has been retained to be used as a bedroom in the future. The layout also includes a new ground floor shower space and utility room.