This row of four estate cottages in a quiet Lincolnshire village are conspicuous for their beautiful and eccentric neo-gothic detailing. Dating from the 1870s, they were designed by George Gilbert Scott, most famous for his imposing Midland Grand Hotel fronting St Pancras station in London, and are rightly Listed Grade II.

The end cottage had a utilitarian 1960s extension which included a staircase to the upstairs bedrooms, previously only accessible via a ladder! The owners asked us to replace this unsympathetic addition to provide a place to dine and enjoy the garden, and make the cottage fit for modern living. Wedged between stone gables that characterise the original design we have built a new ‘piece of furniture’ in timber, designed with reference to Tudor bay windows, and made to last as long.

The oak frame, exposed inside and out, is precision cut from a 3D model using CNC technology. The facets on the facade make the frame appear more delicate, let more light in, and create attractive shadows in oblique sunlight. It was made in close collaboration with Cowley Timber, a local firm with a national reputation for beautiful wooden structures. The extension is triple glazed and underfloor heating has been introduced throughout, powered renewably by an air source heat pump hidden behind a shed, making the cottage sustainably warm.

A garden has been laid out to be complementary to the architecture, and true to its Arts & Crafts origins. The formally planned ‘parterre’ is balanced by naturalised planting and framed by an oak pergola screen designed to train espaliered fruit trees of old-English varieties.