Contemporary coastal family eco-home

The architectural design approach has been heavily influenced by the overriding desire to create a building that works in harmony with the landscape, site topography and local vernacular. The elongated pavilion inspired approach looks to create a long low building in the landscape using materials and a rhythm to the façade to break down the building form and offer privacy.

The location of the building and its footprint was developed out of a desire to retain and enhance the onsite bio diversity and mixed tree varieties on site as well as maximising the passive environmental (solar and daylight) factors on the site.

Working with the wider design team we have developed the design to incorporate sustainable design principles from the initial concepts, focusing on how varying construction methods impact on the embodied and life cycle carbon impact. Similarly assessing window sizes, and active solar screening has been developed to add layers to the faced detail and ensure that sustainable design principles are part of the design development and not an add on at the end.

Whilst being minded of using high quality materials with a fabric first, low energy form we employed a material palette utilising predominantly timber and stone. This facilitates the use of traditional materials, but expressed in a contemporary way, and allows the building to nestle comfortably into the landscape.

Bell Cornwall Ltd provided support and guidance on the planning route to ensure that the outline application could be developed into a detailed planning submission that received widespread support.