Sited close to the banks of Chichester Harbour on a gently sloping site the rear of the building is lifted above the external ground levels by around 750mm and forms a decked verandah complete with timber posts supporting the oversailing skirt roof around the whole of the ground floor. The projecting eaves offer protection against excessive solar gain through the southern and western glazing in summer while also providing shelter against the prevailing winds and rain.

The skirt roof, together with the low pitched main roof, helps the building hug the site and the weathered timber cladding and shingles will allow the building to blend with the heavily tree lined site perimeter.

The main foundations and timber frame were constructed by MBC Timberframe who specialise in Passivhaus buildings. They completed the insulated piled foundation and slab which laps with the external wall insulation within their twin-wall with minimal thermal bridging. U-Values down at 0.12 and with guaranteed air-permeability rates below 0.6 air changes per hour help drive energy costs down.