House in the Cotswolds, 2018-22
The existing stone farmhouse is on a quiet lane in a rural setting within the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It sits within a partially walled garden and paddock, with views south towards open pasture and fields. To the north are the existing agricultural sheds of a working farm.
Site plan
View from the garden looking south
Existing house and outbuildings
Sketch elevations - north and south
When the clients bought the property it was in need of modernisation. The original farmhouse, dating from the 1970s, had been extended and altered over time, including a large but dilapidated single-storey rear addition. We were asked to remodel the house and its setting, creating additional space and updating the accommodation to suit the needs of a young family. Our proposals replaced the single storey wing with a new two-storey building that provides the principal living spaces, additional bedrooms, bathrooms, and utility rooms.
Alterations to the existing house improve the interrelationship between rooms, and connections with the landscape. As part of thermal improvements, the glazing was replaced with high performance hardwood-framed windows.
The new building adopts the typology of a traditional timber framed agricultural building, appropriate to its setting amongst farm sheds. It is positioned behind, and loosely perpendicular to, the existing house; orienting the new living spaces towards the views, and providing a more generous entrance courtyard to the north.
Long section through new and existing buildings
The building is separated from the farmhouse by a double-height entrance hall, enclosed by an exposed timber stud frame overlaid with glazing. Large timber-boarded doors below a canopy defines the new entrance. Stone pavers are continued internally, and the stone wall of the existing house is left exposed, creating an informal and robust space that sets the character for the new living spaces.
The timber frame of the new building is clad using locally sourced sweet chestnut weatherboarding, weathering to silver-grey. Corrugated sheeting is used for the roof finish, in common with the adjacent agricultural sheds. Window and door openings are carefully scaled and positioned to maintain a barn-like character, with slender metal-framed casements. Larger openings have louvred timber shutters to provide shading, but can be fully opened to allow controlled passive solar gain in winter. Galvanised steel is used to form window reveals, gutters and downpipes.
Materials study - new entrance hall and gable elevation
Ground floor plan
First floor plan
Second floor plan
Roof plan
Photos taken during construction showing 'pinwheel' structure
The new living spaces have a polished concrete floor and walls are lime-plastered in natural pigment colours. Exposed timber framing and finishes give a comfortable informal feel. A cluster of four oak posts form a single column that supports the first floor beams, with exposed joists arranged as a ‘pinwheel’ defining areas for sitting, dining, cooking and working.
A new stair to the upper floor is formed in Douglas fir on a concrete plinth, with a bridge connection spanning the entrance hall and leading to the existing house. One of the new bedrooms has a mezzanine, the other is open to the roof volume.
The retention and reuse of most of the existing house is much less energy intensive than the alternative of demolition and new build. With significant thermal improvements to the existing fabric the ongoing energy use has also been greatly reduced.
The new timber framed building is constructed with very high levels of insulation, air-tightness, and uses high performance glazing to minimise energy use. Fittings were chosen to reduce both energy and water usage, and the new underfloor heating system will be connected to a ground source heating/cooling circuit during a future phase of landscape work.
Ground floor plan
First floor plan
Second floor plan
Roof plan