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Architects: Stolon Studio Ltd
- Area: 1130 m²
- Year: 2023
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Photographs:French and Tye, Robert Barker
Text description provided by the architects. Stolon Studio has just completed its latest housing project, The Parks in Herefordshire, transforming a group of neglected, rural, agricultural buildings to provide eight, new sustainable homes in a beautifully landscaped setting. Originally a dairy farm, this assembly of rural timber-framed 15th and 16th-century buildings had fallen into disrepair and collapsed through long-term neglect. The project provides much-needed rural housing to address increasing local demand as well as for those turning away from city living. The Parks further develops Stolon's 'sociable housing' concept, to provide an alternative rural typology to the isolated single home, offsetting rural loneliness and helping to nurture new communities. Built for a small, ethical developer, The Parks seamlessly combines old and new to create individual homes with shared, communal spaces including barns, gardens, wildlife areas and meadows.
As with all of Stolon's sociable schemes, The Parks has been carefully designed to balance privacy, openness, and community. Whilst each home enjoys a private garden, with traditional lawns, terraces and a shed topped with a biodiverse green roof, there is also a communally owned meadow - for food growing and a Library of Things, with shared resources and equipment for all to use. Homes are arranged around a central courtyard – the former farmyard - and range from 3- to 5-bedrooms. A variety of spatial layouts accommodate a range of housing needs from families to downsizers and the elderly. Each distinctive home retains the name of its original agricultural use such as the Farmhouse, The Grain Mill, and The Winnows, giving character and individuality to the ensemble.
Sensitive to context and heritage, as well as sustainability and waste, Stolon Studio has repaired and celebrated historic features wherever possible. Fireplaces have been exposed and restored, existing elm and oak beams have been braced with special steel ties and, where possible, brick and stone have been exposed. Walls and beams have been straightened and reset rather than rebuilt. Overall, materials reflect the context and traditions of the Herefordshire countryside with a combination of red brick, tile and terracotta echoing the reddish pink gravel of the river valley and the rich red clay soil of the local area, renowned for its food produce. Robust metal roofing references the agricultural heritage of the buildings. Interiors are finished in soft, untreated earthy tones and breathable clay paints. New and re-used oak elements are unified with a light clay-based stain which helps preserve the timber.
The deep retrofit approach at The Parks promotes fossil fuel-free living and includes new electrics, plumbing, air source heat pumps, and underfloor heating to create high-performance houses with low operational costs and carbon emissions. The construction process was viewed as an opportunity to contribute to the rural economy, using local materials, and traditional techniques and employing local workmen, craftsmen and small family-run specialist businesses. Although some of the newer existing buildings were demolished to create the courtyard and shared spaces, Stolon Studio worked with a highly skilled site team to salvage historical timber, stone and bricks, and old farm equipment, using an area of the site as their own architectural salvage yard. They also minimized the site waste taken to landfill, by crushing the demolition waste materials to form aggregate for use on-site rather than bringing in new materials. An original millstone set in the landscape serves as a touchpoint for the development's origins.
The development also addresses the land contamination caused by long-term neglect of the property. Within this rural setting the landscape design has been inspired by delicate hedgerows, with native species such as cow parsley and soft white flowers which contrast with the reddish buildings. A wildflower meadow, bat habitats, new tree planting and a pond, all enhance and contribute to wildlife and biodiversity.
