01494 778787
01494 778787
Neil Edwards, co-founder of AV Architects, discusses the stunning dining room and boot room extension created for Fir Tree House, a Grade II listed building set in an area of outstanding natural beauty, and why the homeowners insisted on a second Urban Front door.
Project details
Architect: AV Architects
Structural engineer: Paul Molineux Associates
Contractor: B W May & Son
Front door (2017): E80 Parma in European oak (1040mm x 2290mm) with option 11 handles and sidelight
Boot room door (2023): E80 Parma in European oak with option 11 handles (1500mm x 2650mm)
Photographer: Juliet Murphy
Tell us about Fir Tree House
Fir Tree House is a Grade II listed building in the hamlet of Ivy Hatch in Kent, dating to at least the 18th century. It is unique thanks to its combination of 18th-century elevations, Kentish vernacular interiors, and timber frame. In 2015, homeowners Mark and Denise renovated and extended the house with the support of an Edinburgh-based architectural firm. A few years later, they commissioned AV Architects to design a glazed dining room opening onto their landscaped garden and a new entrance for their boot room.
Why did your clients choose a second Urban Front door?
Mark and Denise’s architect for the 2015 works had specified an Urban Front door for the main entrance into the home and they wanted both doors to match. They were so delighted with everything about their first Urban Front door that they insisted on the same style for the boot room, and they are both, once again, delighted with their choice, as am I.
Was it difficult to get planning permission given the Grade II listing?
For planning, we had to prove that the dining room extension would not harm the listed building. The property's location, in the Kent Downs area of outstanding natural beauty, meant the project also had to comply with national and local Green Belt policies. In 2015, permission for a brick-clad flat-roofed workshop was granted but wasn't built. The workshop design was used as the benchmark of what could be created in terms of scale. However, because our design linked to the existing building where the workshop did not, it increased the ground floor footprint and required special permission within Green Belt policy requirements.
We demonstrated that the design's nature did not harm the listed building's setting; planning and listed building consent was granted in March 2020.
How did you meet the brief?
The design we presented to Mark and Denise was a study in contextual design and simplicity of form consisting of two blind timber-clad elevations to form an L shape. Their facades match the detailing of the 2015 extension, but a steel structure cantilevers 5.5 metres in both directions from the walls with no structural column in the corner. The ceiling steelwork gets deeper as it reaches the centre of the room, thus producing an inverted pyramid ceiling.
Was it a straightforward build?
Yes, relatively, thanks to the careful thinking during the pre-construction phase and the builder's skill on site. Teamwork is fundamental to creating a building like Fir Tree House. Collaboration and respect between the structural engineer, architect, and builder are essential.
Is there anything else you’d like to tell me about Fir Tree House?
My favourite description of the new dining room is from photographer Juliet who says, “The cantilever must be made out of magic stuff, the whole thing defies gravity!”. The realisation of our design was only possible through close collaboration with Ben Tubb of Paul Molineux Associates Consulting Structural Engineers and the dedication of the contractor B W May & Son, and Shane in particular.