It is not unusual that a client will approach us with a site which already has a building on it, sometimes we can work with the existing buildings, sometimes there are too many issues with the existing building to make this feasible and sometimes it is just in the wrong place. By examining all the options we can deliver a design which fully exploits the opportunities a site presents to provide the optimal solution.

These before and after photos show an example of this where a distinctly poor example of a 1960s/70s house was replaced by this Georgian inspired design in the North Wessex Downs Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. The more historic wing at the front was retained and carefully repaired to act as an annexe.

“A bicycle shed is a building; Lincoln Cathedral is a piece of architecture… the term architecture applies only to buildings designed with a view to aesthetic appeal.” Nikolaus Pevsner in the introduction to ‘An Outline of European Architecture’, 1943.

Not every project we get asked to design is grand and large, we often work on smaller projects such as this courtyard building on a country estate in Berkshire.

However, even the humblest buildings we work on still get the same level of care and thoughtfulness of design and attention to detail as the grandest. Careful material choices here of Keymer Tiles handmade clay roof tiles with bonnet hips, oak framing and cladding, and conservation rooflights, coupled with considered design moves including a cupola for ventilation and extra wide carport bays for ease of use elevate this building to something which can hold its own next to a far grander main building.

We’re pleased to have recently gained Listed Building Consent for a scheme of repair and maintenance for this Grade II* Listed Queen Anne gentleman’s residence in the North Wessex Downs. Featured in Country Life Magazine, the building dates back to the early 1700s and we are looking forward to things progressing with this interesting project.