The project, which is due to start on site at the end of July, sees the Hale team return to the property for a second time, after completing a basement and upper floor refurbishment for the same client five years ago. The new project, which is by the same design team, Knox Bhavan Architects, involves a single-storey extension, refurbishment of the open plan kitchen/entertaining space and extensive exterior landscaping.

The extension will form a new art studio for the client, who is an illustrator currently working in an area of the existing kitchen. Constructed of fair-faced concrete with Accoya wood cladding and large windows to maximise natural light, the extension will have access from either the garden or the existing kitchen and will look out onto the newly landscaped terraced garden. Featuring a green roof, which will be planted as a wildflower meadow to attract bees and pollinators, the art studio will also have solar panels, which will generate energy for the whole house. Internally, the extension will feature bespoke integrated joinery and Corian worktops.

The ground floor refurbishment involves the installation of new aluminium bi-fold doors leading from the kitchen to the garden. Internally, a luxury kitchen from Jack Trench Ltd will be installed and the large open plan space will be reconfigured to create a more homely layout.

The exterior landscaping forms a sizeable part of the project, involving excavation to transform the space with multi-level terraces, slate paving and water features. The Burlington Stone slate used in the landscaping will be echoed in the kitchen tiles, creating a natural flow and continuity through the interior and exterior space.

The project has been designed to maximise the existing layout and aspect of the property. One of the key challenges will be to safeguard the roots of a mature willow tree within the grounds, adjacent to the new art studio. To achieve this, Hale will use screw piles to suspend the foundations for the extension above the tree’s routes. All access to the work area at the rear of the property will be via a side entrance so the excavation work will be carried out by mini-diggers, with waste material carried out by this route.

Director of Hale, Christian Hale comments: “It is always satisfying to win repeat projects from an existing client because it testifies to our quality of delivery and the trust they have in what we can achieve. This project will continue an existing relationship between the homeowner, the architect and our team and we are looking forward to seeing the improvements take shape.”