My Favourite One That Got Away

One of the things I’ve always most loved about being an architect is the fact that projects – if they go the way you always hope – end up as very real, physical things. Buildings make a big impact on our places and lives and being part of that process is exciting and satisfying. But […]

Moving Next Door to a Passivhaus

Peter & Margot had lived in their fairly substantial home for many years, but quietly hankered after something warmer and easier to maintain as they got older. Conveniently, their detached home had a substantial garden and there was an inviting gap between their house and the neighbouring one – like a missing tooth in the […]

The Search for Kitchen Sunlight

Robert & Catherine live in a lovely end-terrace house – late Victorian / early Edwardian, with main rooms having high ceilings. The house also has a pleasant rear garden, often used by the family. However, a stumbling block to this was that it also had a double garage between the garden and the house, and […]

Distant Design for a Passivhaus

Tim and JJ Shepherd lived in Singapore, with Tim approaching retirement from teaching geography at an international school. They were moving to the UK, which basked in a balmy climate, according to Tim’s promises. He needed a warm home, and he liked the sound of Passivhaus as an approach. After some searching, a site was […]