This Victorian house in London was originally designed by John Prizeman. Although beautiful in its external appearance the internal layout was not any more suited to modern living requirements, as it had not been renovated since the 70s (or 90s?). The main brief from our client who is a passionate gardener was to improve the access to the garden from the rear. Additionally, the living space and kitchen were moved up from the lower ground floor, and the downstairs itself which was dark and received little natural light was opened up.

We achieved this by removing the lower half of the bay window at the Lower Ground Floor, replacing it with a plinth like glass extension. Not only does it honour the bay at Upper Ground Floor but it also reinterprets the Victorian bay window, characteristic for historic houses of the local area. The transparency of the extension, creates the visual effect of the retained bay to be seemingly floating above it as well as bringing the natural light into the Lower Ground Floor. Large glass sliding doors allow for expansive views of the garden and improve access to it from the Lower Ground Floor which was previously restricted by the small opening in the existing bay window. The site posed particular challenges due to a flood prevention sewer being located under the ground at the rear of the building. However, the project overcomes this constraint by designing the extension to cantilevers off of the existing bay and rear façade, creating a structurally demanding double cantilever.

The combined use of Glass flooring at upper ground floor and glass roofing at lower ground floor create a connection between the old and the new extension as well as allowing diffused light into the lower ground floor and opening up the space vertically.

The kitchen itself which is linear in its layout leads the eye towards the bay window that offers an ideal seating opportunity to enjoy a meal surrounded by the trees and greenery. The Overall layout and materiality of the design reconnect the property to its context and take advantage of its location just behind Hampstead Heath, one of London’s largest parks by emphasizing views of it.

To accommodate the client’s, need for continuous occupation throughout the construction process the project was divided into two phases which allowed the client to continue living on the 1st and 2nd floor while construction was taking place.