We were commissioned in 2022 to complete a full renovation of a 1930s property, which was in an excellent location but lacked charm. The property was a fully detached house with a lack on insulation, which enjoyed a long garden space to the rear.

The brief was to create a new kitchen and living space at ground floor level, which was to have a profiled roof form and plentiful natural lighting. At the top of the house, a new master bedroom was to be formed in what was presently an unheated attic space. Aside from the first floor, which had some well proportioned bedrooms, the house was to be entirely re-modelled.

The property has received an entirely new high performing thermal envelope. Triple glazed timber windows replace UPVC sashes. A fully insulated rendered wall system covers what was originally a cracking render and pebbledash façade. The roof was completely rebuilt with a new warm roof system with high performance insulation, and received new large triple glazed fully openable windows.

Our clients wanted something warm and contemporary, but liveable. We used a palette of natural oak, marble and colour that was informed by the veins in the natural stone. The roof volume is described in two large angular forms that suck in light and draw out heat.  A raised terrace divides the kitchen from the garden, which sits just over half a metre up from the level of the grass.

The openable rooflights and timber triple glazed sliders let large amounts of natural light into the main kitchen and living spaces. They also assist the flushing of odours out of the kitchen. In the summer,  they create a stack effect, pulling in fresh air from the lower level and taking hot air out from out of the house.

At the roof level, the master bedroom space has a unique volume, with sloped walls on all sides. We wanted to accentuate the geometry, so we clad the canting walls in oak panelling, whilst keeping all the vertical and horizontal faces white. The bedroom can be best appreciated from the bed, lying on your back, and looking up at the timber ceiling, which can be uplit in the evening. All the joinery in the roofspace is all cut and carved into the spaces to the edges of the room, forming bedheads, shelves and walk-in wardrobes.

Views are cut out of the roof volume out towards the surrounding area. Windows respond to the direction and aspect. Large openings look out to protected views and clerestory windows prevent overlooking from neighbouring properties. Where possible views are framed to local landmarks. The height advantage allows new unseen views out of the master bedroom. Once again, the space is flooded with natural light from all directions, hence our titling of the project ‘The Lighthouse’.