Opening a dark terraced house to its steep, tiered garden with a glazed extension, plus an excavated basement and sunken front light-well.
A terraced property set on a hill with a steep, tiered back garden. The house had an existing ground floor extension which let in little natural light and had begun to deteriorate, leaving the rear of the ground floor dark and damp.
The aim was to open up the rear of the house to the garden, allowing maximum light to penetrate the plan. Extra space was gained by digging back the earth and extending. New concrete steps were poured to act as a retaining element and to give access to the higher tiers.
Similar work was carried out at the front of the property: the existing coal-hole basement was excavated across the width of the house, and the front hard standing was dug out to create a sunken light-well with stepped access.
Undertaken and managed by Gareth Allison while at Paul Archer Design.
