Best Architecture Single Residence EUROPE Award Winner 2024-2025

Best Architecture Single Residence UK Award Winner 2024-2025

Best Architecture Single Residence Surrey Award Winner 2024-2025

Sited on the brow of rolling hills overlooking a valley on the edge of the Surrey Hills Natural Landscape with a backdrop of mature woodland, the concave curved plan provides different views from the principal spaces along the southern elevation while the curved circulation spaces offer tantalising glimpses between rooms. Spine walls, following straight radii lines from a common centre point, divide the curved walls to create and define the spaces.

The curved plan is also echoed in the split curved roof mixing barrel vaults and S-spline roof forms with an interlinking flat roof entrance hall and the curving roof forms express the rolling nature of the surrounding Surrey Hills. Internally, the curved glu-lam beams forming the barrel vault roofs are visible in the ceilings to the main reception spaces and principal bedroom suite. These main spaces are positioned on the southern side of the building, leaving circulation spaces and ancillary utility spaces to the north, to take advantage of the views over the rolling hills and valley below. In order to ensure overheating isn’t an issue, solar control triple glazing to the southern elevation is combined with the deep overhanging roofs to the ground floor spaces which also creates outdoor covered dining spaces.

The curved floor plan, with radii varying from 25m to 38m, created interesting construction issues not just in terms of setting out but also curved steelwork, curving plasterboard to follow the faceted blockwork walls, steel spine staircases following the radii of curved walls, setting straight windows in curved walls etc. For the zinc standing seam roof, each panel tapers in plan to take up the curve while also bending to follow the roof profile; curving in three dimensions for the S-spline roof section as well. The attention to detail required to produce such a high-quality and unusual build tested all the contractors on site but the end result speaks for itself and the client, and we, are delighted with the finished home.

Externally, the paved terrace is carefully set out to pick up on the spine walls in straight lines with diagonal paving between to take up the curved plan. The overhanging roofs are supported on a series of timber and steel posts, aligned with the internal spine walls and reminiscent of the curving colonnades of Classical antiquity such as Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli. The internal spine walls are further expressed externally with low stone clad walls extending beyond the line of the terrace to divide the private terraces from the bedroom wing with the outdoor entertainment areas leading down to the outdoor kitchen, swimming pool with its retractable enclosure and attached gym, games room and changing facilities.

The soft palette of external materials and colours was carefully chosen to represent the tones of the woodland behind and the sandy soils of the local area. Ecoscape composite recycled timber cladding, Norstone stone cladding, VM Zinc roofing and aluminium powder coated rainwater goods and self-coloured soffit and fascia boards minimise future maintenance.

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Thank you to Matt Chisnall for his photography work again

The site, while a simple rectangle on plan, slopes down considerably from the road level and the new design takes advantage of this to step down from the front of the house (entrance hall, reception and utility room) to the rear of the house to give the open plan kitchen / dining room and adjacent TV room / snug a more generous ceiling height.

Designed using traditional double pitched roof form the dark timber cladding and crisp white render are complemented with dark bronze coloured window frames, rainwater goods and fascias.

The symetrical roof has been created as the road itself south to north and the lowered eaves to the north ensure that from the neighbour’s view the replacement house has no impact on theie view of skyor created an unacceptable loss of daylight. A detailed Daylight Impact Assessment was carried out using 3D modelling software to create Waldram Diagrams and to ensure that the Visible Sky Component and Annual Probable Sunlight Hours remained above the BRE recommended impact limits.

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In 2015 we completed a new home set within a different part of the same woodland site for a private client who then discovered the love of building. Having project managed the build of their first house the client then decided to embark on building a second house further down their large plot.

Whereas their first project was unashamedly modern in style this project has a more traditional style to it albeit it with a contemporary twist.

The linear plan form is exaggerated by the low pitched roof with wide overhanging eaves, high level string course separating the rendered ground floor from the timber clad first floor. This timber string course continues around the whole building and delineates the windows sills to the upper floor while the choice of vertical timber cladding sets a rhythm and echoes the vertical pine tress around the site.

The rear balcony off the Principal Bedroom forms a canopy over the large south facing ground floor reception room windows and is supported on stone piers; the same stone used on the front porch and the ground floor of the neighbouring first house for the client.

Built using solid 215mm blockwork with external insulation and render the house benefits from a high thermal mass internally while the external insulation ensures a consistent wrapping of the structure and avoids thermal bridging. The overhanging roof eaves also provide passive solar control to the upper floor windows.

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The existing single storey bungalow with shallow pitched roof was to be replaced with a new predominantly two storey home. To the rear, the open plan kitchen dining family room areas sit half a level up from the ground floor to take advantage of the natural levels across the site.

Designed to be built using a well-insulated and lightweight timber frame the overhanging roofs to the south and west elevations provide natural passive solar controls. Whole House Mechanical Ventilation coupled with ground source heat pumps ensured that the scheme surpassed the requirements of Building Regulations for energy efficiency. Detailed 3D modelling and assessments of the roof overhangs were carried out with annual sun-hour calculations to the large areas of glazing checked using the geosynchronised 3D model.

The flat roof design ensured that the overall height of the new building was only 0.5m higher than the ridge line of the existing house and the L-shaped plan allowed the frontage of the existing buildings to be reduced from 25m to 17m for the replacement building; all of which ensured that the planners agreed that the proposals would not appear more intrusive in the AONB landscape.

The flat roofs are covered with Badum’s XF301 lightweight sedum roofing blanket to increase biodiversity on the site and compensate for the larger footprint of the new building. External lighting is kept below the roof and first floor overhangs or are cowelled to ensure downlight cast light only as the site sits within a Dark Skies protected area; the use of warm white 3,000k LED lights providing no more than 7.6 lux meets the requirements of the Bat Conservation Trust’s guidance on external lighting.

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The first of several new homes to be completed on a large site on the edge of Farnham in Surrey, this new timber frame home scores a high A rating (94) on the EPC due to the use of additional insulation, air source heat pumps, over 3Kw of photovoltaic solar panels coupled with a 6Kwh battery storage and whole house mechanical ventilation with heat recovery.

The wrap-around verhanda to the south and west elevations provides a simple and traditional solution that ensures that overheating due to solar gains in summer months is eliminated as it protects the large french doors and windows to the ground floor living spaces. The verhanda also provides a covered porch area to the front entrance and a sheltered area to the garden terrace.

Soft coloured Dove Grey painted timber cladding blends with the natural slate roofing with lead hip and ridge rolls but is accented by the white framing to the windows, corner posts, verhanda supports and gable fascias.

Internally, the ground floor includes a large open plan kitchen, dining and family space, a seperate reception room, study and a ground floor bedroom with ensuite facilities.

The first floor includes four generous double bedrooms, two further ensuites and a large family bathroom.

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Timberframe by Merronbrook.

Bespoke hand made kitchen from Charles Yorke Kitchens.

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.

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For more images click here for the project page.

The rear of the plot rises up from the sunken rear terrace and extensive pergola feature to create a sheltered garden entertaining area.

The double height central entrance hall with a feature curving stair, large rooflight and full glazing includes a generous galleried landing. Glazed doors throughout the ground floor ensures that the owners can enjoy views through the house to the gardens beyond.

The flat, cantilevered roof design, low retaining walls and use of different materials extenuates the low, horizontal feel of the scheme while the roof and balconies around the house also provides passive solar control to the large areas of glazing on both floors.

Planning is expected to be submitted in Summer 2020.

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