Rural Development

A Rural housing development on a brownfield site, Kent.

The central theme of the design is to construct a new farmstead type development. The rural location has influenced all aspects of the design form the layout to the style and material pallet. The layout is set around a central courtyard with the larger ‘barn’ house facing east to the new paddock. The main entrance faces the courtyard. The courtyard is bounded to the south by the car ports and garages, which are intended to act as a type of ‘stable’ to house the cars and keep them off the courtyard. A central tree will provide screening and form a focal point around which the driveways are located. The small houses are intended to reflect outbuildings and the roof forms are turned to add visual interest to the development.

The buildings will be clad in vertical timber cladding with metal roofs and wall cladding. The materials are intended to be agricultural in feel reflecting the rural location and referencing barn the structures across the countryside. The zinc will be pre-patinated and the timber will fade to a silver grey over time. The paddock will be bounded by native hedgerows to encourage biodiversity. Groups of trees will be planted in the field to give a parkland feel. A pond will be built to encourage wildlife and further enhance the biodiversity of the site.