One Oak, Hampstead

One Oak is a Grade II listed Arts and Crafts house in the conservation area of Hampstead, London. It was built in 1890 by Arthur H. Mackmurdo, a founder of the movement, and is one of only two of his houses still standing.

I was originally engaged to redesign the pre-existing rear extension, to provide an open plan kitchen and dining room and a family room within the loft space, reached by an elegant spiral staircase. I was later engaged again to design and submit a second planning and listed building application for a garage block to the front of the house.

The house is both listed and within a conservation area, so every change had to respect its heritage. The existing kitchen had first been extended in the 1980s by previous owners; it had a steeply elevated slate roof but lacked charm and character and was in need of rejuvenation. The extended kitchen, dining room and family room face the private south-east garden, so they do not have a visual impact on the main and front parts of the listed building.

For reasons of architectural honesty and integrity, I felt it would be inappropriate to replicate the style of the listed building, and more fitting to adopt a clean, contemporary and modest approach as a reflection of the present day. The proposed curved roof and parapet upstand were carefully designed to harmonise with the existing grand house, and the contemporary style of the extension reflects the architectural diversity and heritage of the area. Because One Oak is such an important historic building, I consciously specified traditional materials and the architectural detailing found in the listed building and the wider conservation area.

The second application, for the garage block, was successfully obtained. The aim throughout was to create an elegant addition that would serve the needs of the client and his family, sympathetic and contextual to the character of the conservation area. It was an honour to have had the opportunity to work on this magnificent building.