Aim:

The existing house had been an earlier conversion of a kiln building which had a number of ad-hoc and poorly built extensions over time. The result was a series of damp, cold, low ceilinged and badly lit spaces that had been crammed together with no flow between the rooms and no logic to the layout. The project took over three years from start of the design process to the completion on site and involved the demolition and replacement of the majority of the existing extensions including an old detached garage to the rear accessed through a low opening in the existing building.

Additional images can be seen in the Project Brochure which can be downloaded here.

Thanks to Matt Chisnall Architectural Photography for the photography work.

Scope:

BWP Architects were involved in this project from the original inception through to handover and our work included the design of much of the interior work and gardens as well and the building itself and working with the clients on the design and selection of individual pieces of furniture, kitchen and bathroom design, bespoke metalwork, fountains, garden features and interior finishes.

Kiln Building:

A key element to the design was the complete stripping out of the three-storey interior to the kiln building and removal of the roof to be replaced with a new pyramid structure and the construction of new attached curved stair tower to the rear. This allowed a single new floor to be inserted in the old kiln building in place of two previous floors to give high ceilings and create usable spaces.

The stone spiral staircase is built using solid stone treads from the same quarry as the stone tiling to the ground floor. The new pyramid roof over the former kiln building includes a traditional working cowl which is visible internally from a glazed opening above one of the bedrooms.

Rear Extensions:

Behind the original front buildings a series of existing rear extensions were replaced with a single 3m wide glazed corridor to link the main living spaces along the front of the original building ending in a large gable end glazed elevation giving views to the countryside and hills beyond. This main body of the house also received a complete new replacement roof allowing high vaulted ceilings with stainless steel ties and oak purlins to be incorporated.

The 1970s built duo-pitched roof extension further to the rear had the main structure retained but the roof removed and replaced with a gull-wing roof. The allowed 3m high French windows to the Master suite to maximise the views and the cantilevered zinc roof and traditional dark stained timber clad wing walls provide privacy and passive solar shading.

Garaging:

The detached garage to the rear was partially demolished and, with the infilling of the former access through the building, created a private formal rear courtyard. A new curved replacement garage was constructed below the front garden, accessed via a curving ramped driveway with turntable in front of the curved, automated timber doors. Bronze coloured bespoke balustrading adds a dramatic and artistic feature to the access stair and upper courtyard over the garage, reflecting different light and colours as they follow the curve of the garage walls.

Gardens:

The gardens and rear courtyard were redesigned to relate to the new works and completed with a new glazed pavilion style garden room complete with reflecting pool. The three-sided glass pavilion is completed with a cantilevered zinc roof to compliment the rear of the house.

Summary:

The final project is, we feel, a huge success and blends both the traditional original building with the new contemporary style works acting as the perfect backdrop to the clients’ extensive collection of modern and antique furniture and works of art.

All successful projects require commitment and trust from the client and we have been delighted to be involved in this and to help them realise the full potential of the property and gardens.

For other BWP Architects remodelling projects please click here.

Leigh built a brilliant working relationship with our Builder and kept everyone in-check ensuring the job ran to schedule and keeping an eye on the budgets.What should have been the most stressful time in our lives became an exciting creation of which ourselves, Leigh and the builders are all very proud.”

Mike and Caroline Neame, Kingswood

The client’s brief was to remodel the existing house to provide the following accommodation:

• Hot Tub room including Sauna and Steam Rooms, changing room;
• Gymnasium;
• Cinema / Games room;
• Additional bedroom with ensuite facilities;
• Additional large reception room opening onto the spacious and mature gardens;
• Replan the kitchen to provide an open-plan living / family space;
• Replace existing detached double garage for integral triple garage;
• Remodel the exterior to the rear to provide a more contemporary feel;
• Maintain the ‘traditional’ look of the front elevation;
• Replan the Entrance Hall to provide a more dramatic space and clear away the small ‘boxy’ rooms that littered the ground floor accommodation.

The solution proposed included the construction of two new wings to the south facing rear elevation creating a natural courtyard patio enclosed by the wings which the family room, hot tub room and new reception room opened. To the first floor the gymnasium and cinema were located above the new triple garage and hot tub area.

Clearing away all the walls of the annex to the right of the property allowed the existing dining room to be relocated and by removing the walls to the entrance hall, taking in the former dining room, and removing the bedroom and ensuite above created a very large grand double height entrance hall suitable for a house of this size. The incorporation of a new gable feature window to the front elevation allows light to flood into this previously small and dark entrance area.

Starting on site in September 2011 and completed spring 2012 the construction works were managed by Steele-Perkins Project Management.

The existing neglected bungalow has been thoroughly modernised and extended with the addition of a timber frame first floor extension providing an additional full floor of accommodation.

The ground floor has been re-modelled with all internal walls removed or adapted to create an open plan living, dining, kitchen area as well as a study and separate TV room to the rear overlooking the gardens.

The new first floor provides four generous double bedrooms and two bathrooms with a walk-in-wardrobe to the master suite.

The existing yellow brick and concrete tile facades have been reworked to give a modern, clean rendered and timber clad finish with a new slate tile roof to complement the grey aluminium powder coated windows.

Re-landscaping to the front and rear gardens completed the project which sold, above the asking price, within days of being marketed.

Completed in 2014 this large remodelling and extension project removes a series of existing flat roofed ad-hoc alterations and a detached garage to open up the site to the front drive approach.

Despite the client being originally advised by the local planners that no sort of extension to the existing property would be allowed, due to its location within Green Belt, BWP Architects successfully achieved planing for a scheme that almost doubled the existing size of the property within its large grounds.

A 3m deep two storey rear extension is being created to increase ground floor living accommodation and to improve the size of the first floor bedrooms. This rear extension has been designed with gable roofs to match the gable roofs to the front of the house including matching roof pitches, eaves heights, window proportions and materials.

To the west side, a partial single storey, partial two storey extension is provided. This is set back from the front of the main building line and as such has minimal impact on the character of the area as views of it are limited. The roof over the single storey side extension has been designed to mimic the existing cat slide roof over the original side project to the east elevation.

In order to achieve a harmonious blend of new and old, the existing roof tiles and hanging tiles will be stripped and the whole replaced with reclaimed tiles to match throughout. On the ground floor the existing mix of painted brickwork, original brickwork with lime mortar and 1980’s brickwork with cement mortar will be rendered with new rough-cast render to achieve a single finish.

The existing roof space has been doubled in size and opened up to form a loft space for an additional bedroom, ensuite and games room. These spaces are lit by dormers and rooflights on the rear elevation only.

The existing property was in a poor state of repair and was in need of a major overhaul. To the rear of the property a single storey flat roof extension and first floor full width dormer window have been removed, the surrounding roof and walls removed totally removed back to the middle of the house.

In its place a new single and two storey extension has been constructed using a steel frame infilled at the ground floor with solid blockwork, externally insulated and renders while above the frame is infilled with a more lightweight timber framing to support the western red cedar cladding.

Internally most of the existing walls were either removed or stripped back to the original structure to allow the whole house to be replumbed, rewired and replastered. New doors, skirtings and aarchitraves have been fitted throughout. The existing staircase was also replaced. incorporating a new kitchen, dining room, master bedroom suite, children’s playroom, bedrooms and bathrooms. The existing ground floor bathroom has been removed to create a significantly larger entrance hall and ground floor WC while the existing lounge has been opened up to the new rear extension dining room with floor to ceiling folding hidden screens to maintain flexibility of the space.

The new rear extension contains the repositioned kitchen, the extended master bedroom suite including walk-in-wardrobe and ensuite and the new dining room. To the first floor the central section contains a large childrens’ playroom with new ensuite and family bathrooms to the set back wings.

The cantilevered stainless steel and glass balcony and the cantilevered and tapering eaves provide sun shading to the large sections of glazing to the south facing rear elevation to prevent excessive solar gain during summer while allowing the lower winter sun to warm the rooms behind. The degree of projection for the balcony and roof was carefully modelled in 3D using sunshading software to establish an optimum dimension. The balcony, accessed through the folding French doors, further extends the first floor living space while offering views across the neighbouring fields and golf course.

Sir Stephen and Lady Lamport

Sir Stephen & Lady Lamport extended the cottages in 1988 to provide an additional bedroom and bathroom to the first floor and to extend the existing ground floor breakfast room but were disappointed in the final quality of the build. Another unfortunate addition was a rear dormer window that was very unsympathetic to the style and massing of the original building. One of the fundamental brief requirements for the new work was to ensure a seamless blend between any new extensions and the existing 19th Century buildings.

The existing south elevation of the house presented a rather stark facade to the road, albeit obliquely, with no windows and only the chimney breast and overgrown door canopy offering any architectural relief.

The new works created a third cottage to the rear of the existing forming an L-shaped building and containing a new Master Bedroom suite, walk-in-wardrobe, ensuite, new library study and an enlarged kitchen. The use of carefully selected bricks, distressing the new mortar, using reclaimed tiles and carefully matching the details of the existing timber windows provided the seamless connection between the new work and the existing buildings.

The introduction of the third ‘cottage’ also allowed the internal circulation to be replanned and achieved a more flowing route around the house, tying the two existing cottages together. The elevation facing the road was also addressed by the introduction of a second, balancing, chimney stack to the library and new windows to this elevation to provide much needed natural light to the first floor landings.

The existing open rear patio was removed to allow the construction of the third cottage. It was replaced with a new sunken and partially walled terrace garden between, and accessed directly from, the new library and the existing kitchen and breakfast room.

Completed in February 2006 for a construction budget of around £300,000.

Wingate Cottage is a Grade II Listed property in the Great Ouseburn Conservation Area. The existing kitchen was cramped and compromised by three doorways. An existing single-storey extension contained a utility room, boiler and pantry but blocked views of the garden.

The Utility Room was relocated to an under-utilised storage area and a new back door was added to provide access to the garden. The existing cloakroom was modified to suit the new layout.

A new single-storey extension was added with complimentary materials and detailing. Four new steel beams were inserted to create a large open-plan space. One of the existing doorways was turned into a bookcase allowing a new efficient U-shaped kitchen to be installed with a larger four oven Aga. Bespoke oak cabinets were manufactured by Chapel Kitchens of Nun Monkton along with a matching bench and dining table. Two ‘conservation’ rooflights ensure natural light fills the new garden room. An oak sliding/folding door was manufactured to match the existing windows and provide level access to the redesigned garden.

The project was completed in Summer 2010.

The project involves the complete redesign of the exterior of the house, replacing a disastrous mix of plastic cladding, stone cladding and facing brick with a modern, clean aesthetic of white render over a new layer of external insulation. The existing heavy concrete roof tiles are replaced with natural slate, the white plastic windows replaced with new double glazed powder coated aluminium windows in a dark slate grey colour to match the roof and rainwater goods.

The existing conservatory is replaced with a new sun-room below a new large balcony with glazed balustrading accessed directly off the new master bedroom suite with clear views over the adjacent Wray Common Conservation Area.

The existing single storey garage to the far side is replaced with a new two storey extension, extending both to the front and rear, incorporating the new master bedroom suite, guest suite, new utility room improved garaging, and the new music room extending into the south facing gardens.

The deep overhanging eaves to the roof provide passive solar shading from the summer sun to the first floor rooms. A new front projecting porch and gable provides the much needed balance to the front elevation as well as relieving the cramped existing bathroom accommodation to the first floor.

The original ‘U’ shaped plan with narrow rooms required the insertion of a new link corridor which retained a very thick stone wall within the heart of the building thus adding to the thermal mass and the performance of the underfloor heating.

The careful attention to detailing of the external fabric, both new and existing, results in the finished building sitting harmoniously with the surrounding landscape.

Northumberland, completed December 2008.