Our clients fell in love with the charm of Colombier House which has seen numerous alterations since its construction nearly 400 years ago. The most recent alterations, around 30 years ago, included the addition of a large lean-to conservatory at the rear of the property. Our client wished to make the necessary alterations to turn this into their forever home - formed of a sympathetically restored farmhouse and barn with a sleek contemporary extension to the rear - adding their chapter to the story of this historic building.

The extension incorporates a modern open plan kitchen-dining-living room - making the most of the views down into the valley and opening up onto a patio with a swimming pool to the south. The ground floor of the extension would also incorporate a more efficient utility, whist a conversation pit is created at the heart of the scheme, into which all surrounding rooms feed - creating a sociable environment for our client’s family and friends.

All granite from the demolition works will be sorted and stored on site. The best pieces will be used on the roadside elevation of the garage and the remainder will be used for landscaping at the rear of the property. This will be a way of ensuring the roadside elevation is in keeping with the historic farmhouse, with local weathered granite being difficult to source.

The new extension will offer a far higher specification than can be achieved with the existing buildings at the rear of the farmhouse and will benefit from more sustainable materials, construction methods and a higher performing thermal envelope, to mitigate environmental impact and embodied energy as much as possible, with the addition of passive and active systems to optimise in-use performance.