Two semi-detached Victorian houses have been converted and joined together to create one single family dwelling. In order to gain planning permission, the front façade had to be retained and the dividing wall in the rear garden was to remain in place.
The project involved the design of a new central stair which passes through what was the party wall, with the existing symmetrical arrangement rotated to achieve a continuous flow of spaces throughout each floor. A two-storey extension was added to the rear to create a large open plan living area at first floor and a self-contained flat at ground floor. Much of the existing second floor and roof structure was retained along with the external façades to minimise cost and retain the character of the existing buildings.
The main structural challenge was the phasing of works to allow for demolition of most of the rear wall and internal party wall at ground and first floor level while retaining the existing second floor and roof structure. This required close liaison with the main contractor’s temporary works engineer, which resulted in changes to the permanent steelwork design to accommodate the installation of the temporary works in a phased sequence.
Completed 2015.
