Church View

Services
Architecture

Project Description +

This Grade II listed property is situated on the edge of the South Downs in West Sussex. It currently comprises a number of buildings which have gradually been added to the original 17th Century Cottage. Our appointment was to provide a central ‘hinge’ and a clear and distinct entrance to the property, with 13 outer doors 4 of which front doors, there was no hierarchy to access and difficult to keep secure. The removal of many of the poorest quality additions to the building was an important part of the brief, to improve and better reveal the two most historic parts of the site; the cottage and barn. We were also asked to rationalise the plan and reduce the distance between the different sleeping areas, by providing better access to the first floor of the cottage. A new family kitchen is to be provided in the Artist’s Studio, to take advantage of its raised elevation, natural light and far reaching views. With the addition of a small mezzanine as additional living space for the young children, the family can be together in one living space. A small timber clad extension will replace a uPVC conservatory providing additional utility space and a boot-room. The rear kitchen extension is to be rebuilt to provide a new timber lined master bedroom with en suite, connected to the gardens and views of the South Downs. The aim was to keep the amount of structural building work and disruption to the property to a minimum so we proposed to retain the majority of the structure of the existing link building. A simple gesture of pushing back the front wall, we created a more clearly defined entrance, whilst revealing the historic barn, the second oldest building on the site. The result is a vastly improved plan, a more pleasing rhythm to the street and a return to the historic profile of the barn building. The pitched roof form responds to the adjacent gable and provides the necessary head height to access a mezzanine level where a simple, glass connection ensures new access to the Cottage’s first floor touches the listed structure gently. The black stained wood cladding responds to an earlier black barn that originally sat on the site but also references the local & distinctive vernacular. Phase 2 will include the restoration of the main cottage which has had a century of significant and mixed-quality refurbishment work done to it, by carrying out honest and sympathetic repairs that reveal the original parts and make careful decorative improvements. Full Planning & Listed building consent was granted in January 2019, with Phase 1 works due to complete on site towards the end of 2019.

Project Summary +

Client Private
Location Pulborough, West Sussex
Sector Residential
Scope Interior Remodelling & Extensions
Value £350,000
Area 160m2
Status Stage 5 - Phase 1 Construction