Hill Crescent

The brief

A large 1930s house that had not been touched for decades: original services, a cellular ground floor, a cramped kitchen and a garden elevation that turned its back on the view. The owners wanted a modern family home without losing the character of the house.

Design approach

The plan opened the ground floor towards the garden with a rear extension glazed almost floor to ceiling, and added a rear dormer to make the roof usable. Period details — the staircase, the leaded windows to the side — were kept and repaired, while the kitchen, utility room and bathrooms were designed new around how the family actually lives.

Construction

The refurbishment ran through every room: structural openings, a new roof structure for the dormer, complete rewiring and plumbing, new heating, plastering, joinery, kitchen and bathroom installation, decoration and the external render. Sequencing was planned so that the family could return to a house that was finished in one go rather than in phases.

Notable features

• Rear extension with full-height glazed screens and balcony above
• Rear dormer loft conversion
• Blue shaker kitchen with quartz-topped island
• Dedicated utility room with Belfast sink
• Original staircase retained and restored
• Cream-rendered rear elevation

The outcome

A house that keeps its 1930s bones — the leaded glass, the staircase, the proportions — but lives like a new one, with a kitchen and garden room at its centre and every service, surface and fitting renewed.