Design Buy Build Issue 40 2019 | Page 18

Connectivity to the landscape was also a key design driver, large windows located on the south elevation create a fluid relationship between inside and outside, offering spectacular views of the immediate planting by the house and the expansive views of the surrounding landscape. Sustainable The first floor balcony also incorporates a planted herb garden and a natural trellis of espalier Hornbeam along its length, further enhances the connection to the landscape whilst also offering privacy for the bedrooms from walkers in the parkland beyond. Large overhangs and a natural trellis of espalier Hornbeam to the south elevation provides solar control and openings have been distributed to maximise natural cross ventilation which helps with purge ventilation in the hottest summer months. The interior of the house is flooded with an abundance of natural daylight, through the large windows on the south elevation. Materials were selected for their positive environmental impact, the highly insulated timber frame structure minimises the environmental impact reducing the embodied carbon of construction materials and the building’s long-term running costs and associated CO2 emissions. Built to low energy house standards with a high air tightness levels, the ground floor To future proof the home, and offer flexibility to the layout, a bedroom has been included on the ground floor to offer access to all facilities on one level. The design was influenced by positive sustainable objectives. In the building’s plan it was arranged to maximise passive sustainability measures such as solar gain. 18