Burntwood Road
Anna and Craig came to us shortly after purchasing the property. As keen gardeners with a young family, they were attracted to the location and large garden the existing home possessed but wanted to create their ideal family home. The design went through various iterations and planning submissions before it became the beautiful home seen in these photographs.
Before
After
One of the first design decisions was in relation to the street facing elevation to create a better feeling of symmetry and arrival. A matching gable was added to the south and the floor was removed in the central space between the gables at the first floor. Thus, on entering the home through the adjusted central front door one is surprised to find a light, vaulted space lit by the retained dormer window.
Through a considered landscape design sufficient space is given to lawn, swimming pool and children’s fixed play equipment. A small pool house provides accommodation for the pool plant as well as a breakout space that faces a covered outside bar and cooking area. Closer to the house the landscape design creates “rooms in the landscape” that accommodate casual seating, a large dining space and a hot tub.
Design development process
Original house
The original rear of the house was not without charm. The kitchen faced Burntwood Road with the breakfast room facing the terrace and providing access to the garden via French doors.
Initial scheme
The first design presented to Anna and Craig was contemporary in nature with the kitchen/dining area located between the gables. The roof was angled to relate to the change in level between the main lawn at a higher level to the house and to draw the maximum amount of daylight into the space. The scheme was rejected because the master bedroom was to the side rather than being central to the garden lawn and a sense that the contrast between the original and new design was too extreme.
First successful planning application
The second design located the master bedroom central to the lawn and was more simplistic in form and materials. White rendered walls matched the original dwelling and Crittal style doors and windows were incorporated. This scheme was approved by the clients for submission to the local authority and was granted full planning approval in January 2021.
Second successful planning application
After planning was granted Anna came to us to say that although they were delighted to have planning permission, something just didn’t feel right. In the back of her mind there was a feeling of not really “going for it!” As a result we took an alternative approach to maximise the size and impact of the central master bedroom. The ground floor layout did not change, but the first floor master bedroom and second floor went through a radical transformation. Once approved by Anna and Craig it was submitted to the local authority with planning approval granted in May 2021.
Gallery of finished house
The power of Virtual Reality and collaboration
We feel passionately about the relationship between the built form, the flow and nature of internal spaces and how inhabitants move from the internal to external environments. All our design options were presented to Anna and Craig as true virtual reality models allowing them to fully explore and interrogate the design both inside and out, to really unravel what was fundamental to them. As the design became more fixed the amount of detail in the VR model grew, resulting in increased understanding and comfort with how the finish home could look and feel.
Once the design was sufficiently developed Anna and Craig employed SGS Architectural Interiors to bring their expertise and vision to the project. The finished interiors of the home can be seen on their website by pressing the below button.