Remarkable Self Build Home Carefully Designed to Maximise Views of the River Avon

With this in mind, the design team broke the initial rectangular shape in two, twisting each section to create two wings looking both up and down the river. The house would comprise two storeys nestled into the sloping plot, with a floating timber-clad storey at ground level and a brick-finished storey beneath. With two wings and a ‘tail’ containing the garage and utility spaces, the outline of the footprint cleverly resembles the Red Kites soaring majestically overhead.

The structure of the house incorporates various overhangs, which provide the perfect sheltered space for Esther to enjoy the views – even on chilly winter days

In summer 2019, however, initial pre-application feedback from the local planning department was that the proposed design for the house was too large. “We took additional advice from a planning consultant and AR Design Studio advised us to get a landscape architect involved,
too,” says Esther, who found the planning phase to be the most challenging part of the entire project.

“We got tree surveys, bat surveys – everything. We didn’t put in our full application until April 2020 and eventually got approval in July that year.” Most of the planners’ concerns were regarding the size of the house. “We had a bit of a battle and in the end we compromised,” says Andy. “I think we made the house somewhere between 10% and 20% smaller to get it through.”

Managing the spectacular self build

Esther took the lead when it came to tracking down a good main contractor to build the house, which features a concrete retaining structure on the lower ground floor, with a masonry and concrete slab above. The upper storey comprises a steel frame superstructure with timber infill and a wood cladding finish.

The subtle trapezoid shape of the kitchen island is angled to mirror the asymmetric proportions of the room itself

“I did a lot of research on builders. We ultimately went with Matrod Frampton because they’d completed plenty of modern houses,” says Esther, who was keen to ensure the firm were up to the task of realising the crisp, contemporary home she wanted. “The construction techniques for the house we envisioned are quite different to what you’d require for a period property.”

The sleek, minimal kitchen suite is from Harwoods Kitchens. Pendant lamps provide task lighting over the island area

With the assistance of a quantity surveyor, the Horwoods were able to get the tender package to a level they were happy with before breaking ground. To fund the project, they used savings and took out a small mortgage against their existing home. “From a financial perspective, a challenge was anxiety about selling the original house,” says Esther. “The market was hot for rural homes during lockdown, but then it fell away, so that was concerning at the time.”

When Chris sadly passed away during the process, having the support of the team at AR Design Studio was invaluable. “One of Andy’s team managed the build for us – she understood the issues that came up from the builder’s perspective, but ultimately, she was batting for us,” says Esther. “Given Chris’s illness and death, that was brilliant – I wouldn’t have coped without it.”

Progressing the building works

After the site was cleared, the main construction phase began in summer 2021. Having carried out extensive soil surveys, the team didn’t encounter any nasty surprises when it came to laying the foundations and this part of the project proceeded smoothly. One find did slow things down, however. “When we were demolishing the old house, it was frustrating having to take the roof tiles off one by one because a survey had turned up one dead bat,” says Esther.

Fitting the cladding on the upper level of the house took the team longer than expected thanks to the sharp level of detail that was required. However, the sleek aesthetic of the completed property speaks for itself – the boards have been laid with a small but precise gap in between, resulting in a crisp, modern finish. “The team at AR were very careful that things were built exactly as designed, plus the builders had extremely high standards,” says Esther.

All the internal timber details are crafted from oak, including the sleek open tread staircase

For Esther, one of the highlights of the project was observing the superb quality of workmanship shown by the sub-contractors who kitted out the interiors. “Everything inside is asymmetric, and the tilers were working with huge 1.6m² porcelain tiles, running them from inside to outside,” she says. “The finish is amazing.”

She was also particularly impressed with the team that completed the slatted timber ceiling inside the house. “It took them a long time to do because everything is asymmetric – especially the area above the staircase,” says Esther. “The quality with which those two aspects were finished was a real pleasure to watch. Plus, the architect and the builders were a delight to work with.”

Light-filled forever home on the River Avon

Upon stepping into the finished house, visitors are greeted with an immediate view of Salisbury Cathedral through a vast picture window above the staircase. To the right, a deep wooden reveal leads to the sun-soaked kitchen-living-dining space – Esther’s favourite area in the home. “That big room is fantastic,” she says. “I go in there in the morning, make my cup of tea and I’m happy.”

Despite its contemporary form, the spectacular home fits perfectly into its surroundings

To the left of the main entrance is a corridor leading to the study and master bedroom, which has its own ensuite bathroom and dressing room. The bedroom itself benefits from dual aspect views of the river, with minimal framing and broad swathes of glass to create maximum visual impact. “We went for very slender glazing with 22mm mullions, which are almost invisible when you look at them,” says Andy. “You pay a lot of money for that specification, but in return you get incredible views, natural light and moving panels of glass that provide ventilation. That connection with nature plays a powerful part in establishing a sense of wellbeing.”

On the lower ground floor of the property there are three guest bedrooms and a family bathroom. There’s also a plant room that houses the tech setup for the air source heat pump, which powers the underfloor heating system that’s laid throughout the building.
“The house is incredibly well insulated and is double glazed throughout, so it doesn’t use that much energy,” says Esther. “I also opted to install a rainwater harvesting system.”

Despite the challenges she faced along her self build journey, Esther is delighted that the finished house realises the vision she and Chris had for the property when they began the design process. “It meets the exact brief that we gave the architects back in 2019 and totally reflects the vision of what we wanted,” she says. “It took a long time, but we got there.”

AR Design Studio won the Best Architect for a Self Build Home category at the Build It Awards 2024 for this stunning project.

We learned…

• Allocate plenty of time and money to the planning phase. In our case, Covid intervened, which didn’t help matters. We’re also on a site of special scientific interest (SSSI). The river is protected, so we ended up having to throw quite a lot of money at the planning side of things and getting all the right surveys done.
• Talking to all the neighbours helped pave the way for a smoother process. I personally went round and spoke to everyone and was in touch with the parish council. We ended up getting a lot of letters in support of the scheme.
• Ask your architect to incorporate storage space into the design. We have big cupboards behind the door as you walk into the main bedroom, plus the hidden cupboard as you move through into the kitchen. You need space for bulky things like suitcases!
• If I was to do the project again, I wouldn’t have installed floor lights as they shine up into my face – but they’re cut into the timber and porcelain tiles, so they’re here to stay. It’s tricky, because until the house is finished and you actually turn the lights on, you don’t know whether you’ll like them.