Situated in a Berkshire town, Kingbury House is a contemporary new home that offers a considered contrast to the surrounding period properties. Inspired by modernist architecture, the design uses a low-impact form, natural materials and landscaped gardens to create a building that feels both private and perfectly integrated with its urban setting.
The design is defined by a slender roof plane that appears to float over full-height glazing, creating a light, pavilion-style living space. A key challenge was to introduce a bold, contemporary design that felt appropriate within a streetscape of period homes. Our solution was to create a low-impact building that uses the natural gradient of the site, allowing a lower ground floor to be discreetly accommodated. Combined with green roofs and a palette of natural materials, the house sits comfortably within the local vernacular.
The entrance makes a memorable first impression, with a large overhang linking to a double-height atrium that draws light deep into the home. From the private garden, the building’s contemporary style is fully expressed. In a separate wing, the bedrooms are arranged to ensure privacy while maximising natural light. To achieve this, the elevation is broken up by a series of internal courtyards, each containing a single tree. This intervention creates tranquil, private views from within and provides a unique boundary wall for the owner’s art collection.
Sustainability is central to the design. To prevent the extensive glazing from causing the home to overheat, the roof plane cantilevers beyond the main living space to provide passive solar shading, supported by louvres and solar glass. The home’s sustainable credentials are significantly improved with a highly insulated building fabric, passive ventilation, and a ground source heat pump.
The layout has been carefully planned to connect with the landscape while providing spaces for every aspect of modern family life. The lower ground floor is dedicated to leisure, accommodating a lap swimming pool and a gym.
The result is a calm, contemporary home that balances architectural clarity with the seclusion of a private garden retreat.
The design vision of this garden is to compliment the style of the contemporary new home, support the local planning policy to minimise environmental impact, and create a series of interconnecting, Japanese-inspired gardens holistically considered and integrated with the living spaces.
As first coined by the American biologist Edward O. Wilson, this is ‘biophilia design’, a response to the recognition that we possess an innate tendency to seek connections with nature. Kingbury House will be a truly indoor-outdoor home, where the gardens and setting play an integral and symbiotic role with the building and local natural environment.
The garden is split over 2 levels, each of which will be given a different feeling and use. The hard landscape focuses on natural materials such as timber, stone, and clay, alongside British and wildlife supporting vegetation such as Betula, Ilex and Taxus. Our designs meet our clients’ desire for an Asian-Oriental garden style – yet realised via a range of native plant species that will support the local natural environment, habitat and wildlife.
Designing with British and North European native species doesn’t have to mean a messy meadow or wild borders. Kingbury House garden will be beautifully structured and serene, with a palette of plants where every single one will be native and good for biodiversity. Sustainability in harmony with design will be at the heart of this garden.
In the lower garden, local British materials will be used alongside water, introduced to the scheme via a series of ponds and small features to reduce noise pollution and to further support biodiversity and the local wildlife.
Kingbury House is the realisation of a truly holistic design between building and garden; architecture and landscape design. A contemporary vision with a sustainability-led purpose that succeeds through the collaboration of ideas and values from the very start.
Contemporary Classics
Architecture
Landscape Design
Berkshire
In-Design