Stunning Cotswold Farmhouse
In the early seventies an entrepreneur developer bought a small farm on the edge of a hill, with amazing views down and across a stone-built village and out into rolling Cotswolds countryside. There was a bungalow, a small brick farmhouse and a stone barn with some stables. Our client shared the land with a friend and set MRT Architects the task to build two new separate houses on distinct parts of the land. The Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty sets significant constraints which required a very considered design approach, both with planning officers and the local Parish Council.
South Hills Farm was the inspiration for the replacement farmhouse, creating a new imposing Cotswold stone but subtly designed house expressly in the Cotswold style. The house looks above ground to be two storey, but above are two bedroom suites in an expansive attic served by a stairway under a lightwell. Below is a substantial basement which adjoins a new single storey extension which stretches, submerged below ground out to the adjacent stone barn. In this link is an amazing swimming pool with bifold doors overlooking a courtyard and outdoor kitchen which progresses up to a contemporary garden with those views! There is a surprise too as a spiral staircase pops up into the old barn, which has been completely transformed incorporating many architectural historical features into a self-contained annex, with kitchen dining, two storey sitting room and two bedroom suites.
Both the barn and the Cotswold farmhouse have oak and glass timber framed sunroom living spaces, which jut forward onto the edge of the escarpment with that panoramic vista. The house itself has a deep plan, cleverly disguised by multi gables at the rear which allow for a galleried atrium hall, open to above and below, with a crafted curved staircase. In addition to a formal dining room and sitting room, there are kitchens and family rooms. Downstairs is a cinema and wine room with a gym in the basement linked to the pool via a glazed screen and door for a visual connection. Upstairs there are bedrooms, ensuite bathrooms, a study and a laundry room.
This was a really interesting project which pushed the constraints of the protected landscape to the limit of acceptability with a carefully considered planning strategy and excellent presentation of the creative ideas.
The new house fits very comfortably into its surroundings, blending seamlessly with the outstanding natural beauty of the Cotswolds.
