The client’s brief highlighted their frustrations with an existing conservatory built in the 1990’s as “being too hot in summer and too cold in winter,” and their desire for a “more modern aesthetic to the house”.    

The periodic use of the conservatory resulted with a significant negative effect of severing the connection between kitchen dining space and the south facing maturely landscaped garden, and so the principal aim was to create a contemporary room for all seasons.  

However, it seemed wasteful that all the existing conservatory structure and materials should be removed to start again from scratch and so a holistic architectural approach to reducing construction industry waste, streamlining client budget and shortening site phase timescales were all analysed and adopted. The poor thermally performing glazing, polycarbonate roof and timber frames were removed but the realised design resulted with retaining existing concrete foundations, substructure, low level masonry walls and concrete slab insitu. Thus, only very small areas of ground works and excavation were required for new localised foundations to support new steel structure. Existing masonry stonework removed to ‘square off’ the dated conservatory style chamfered footprint and provide a larger rectangular room was reused so that only a minimal amount of new stonework was required.    

The new timber frame walls and pitched slate roof form a highly insulated and air tight construction along with new aluminium frame double glazed windows and doors provide enhanced thermal performance to create a space that is environmentally comfortable all year round. The inclusion of a defra approved wood burning stove gives an additional source of heating when required during colder months along with the cosy ambience and sense of hygge. The large format sliding door and openable vulux rooflights provide natural cross ventilation.

New aluminium bifold doors have been fitted to the existing structural opening between dining kitchen to provide cohesion of aesthetic and flexibility of use.

The completed design offers enhanced visual and physical connection between home and garden with a contemporary aesthetic that sits comfortably alongside the existing house and is a room for all seasons.