Fairfield Park
Date: 2022
Status: Construction
Sector: Residential
Location: Hitchin, Bedfordshire
Local Authority: Central Bedfordshire
Client: Private
Structural Engineer: Corbett & Tasker
Area: GIA 230m²
Cost: £300,000
Fairfield Park is an exercise in modernisation. The catalyst for this partial new-build and full refurbishment was to challenge how a family home can adapt to evolving needs.
The existing home is a building of rooms – a labyrinth of spaces – that demanded rationalising to improve the relationship between formal and informal spaces. To support modern standards of family living, we created a spatial hierarchy that brought clarity to the proposals. Using space as a platform and with the use of internal moveable walls, this not only enables adaptability but also encourages it.
To help define this approach and also create an identity, a single storey extension stretching the full width of the house acts as the focal point for family use. Large scale full height glazing emphasises a sense of lightness, while the curved corners and exposed timber structure provides a softness as well as creating a visual anchor back to the main building.