St Katharine's Precinct
Regents Park, London Complete Client: Private Client
Finalist - SBID Residential Retrofit Project, Finalist - iDOGI 2018 Classical Residential Project Under 1,000sqm Residential Renovation & Extension
The Grade II* Listed House is located in a unique setting of six period houses grouped with a prominent church adjacent to Regents Park. On land owned and managed by the Crown Estate, our clients acquired the building as a speculative development to renovate and extend the existing five-storey property for sale. Dating from 1828, built in Gothic style for the St Katharine's Dock Company, we secured planning to dramatically refurbish the house with a high-specification of finish required.
The design included the creation of a more open, spacious and contemporary interior to the existing ground floor and three upper floors, adding an open-plan 140sqm basement below, seamlessly integrated into the existing fabric. This space, extending below the rear garden, maximises the daylight into the subterranean level through rooflights located in the newly-designed garden.
Crown Estate restrictions limited changes to the existing room layouts, but the narrative of the spaces created a flow to the rooms which was appreciated by the clients. Beyond that, there were technical challenges relating to the incorporation of modern services and infrastructure to be integrated into the existing fabric.
The new basement also presented significant technical challenges, creating a new 'hub' space for the house with a bespoke kitchen as the centrepiece surrounded by a dining area and family sitting room. The maximising the natural daylight for the space also involved creating a glass winter garden connecting to the rest of the house and the garden. The internal layout also maximised the opportunities for the clients to display their art collection, which was a key element of the brief.
