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Runner up in Schuco Excellence Awards _Residential Renovation Project 2021 .

This project focused on reimagining a 1970s house that turned its back on a spectacular south-facing garden. With small windows and living spaces facing north, the original layout felt disconnected from the site. Internally, the house was split across three levels with separate kitchen, dining, and lounge areas — no longer suited to contemporary family life.

The design reorients the home to the landscape, introducing a full-width extension at the lower ground floor, set into the hillside. This space now houses an open-plan kitchen, dining, and living area . The kitchen was relocated from street level to this lower floor, transforming what was once an enclosed, underused space into the heart of the home.

To bring light deep into the plan, a long skylight runs above the kitchen, while a reconfigured stairwell pulls daylight down through the centre of the house. Exposed timber beams and bespoke timber kitchen units bring warmth and a rustic quality to the interiors, tying the new spaces to the woodland views of the Surrey Hills beyond.

Above, the roof of the new extension — visible from the upper floors — has been planted with a blanket of sedum and wildflowers. This green roof not only improves thermal performance but creates a vibrant, seasonal foreground for views from the bedrooms while encouraging biodiversity.

The southern façade of the extension is chamfered to frame views and draw in light, while a generous overhang protects from rain and high sun.

Sustainability was a key consideration throughout. The existing roof was replaced and heavily insulated, with integrated photovoltaic panels. All windows and doors were upgraded to high-performance aluminium units. Site waste was minimised — earthworks were reused to create garden terraces with gabion walls, and old bricks became new garden steps and paths. All materials and finishes were selected for their ecological impact, with second-hand furniture and fittings used wherever possible.