Walters Way Self Build Retrofit

This project was made successful by working closely with the clients, Jo (an art teacher) and Justin (a film-maker), who carried out most of the construction work as well as with Jon Broome, who assisted renowned architect Walter Segal on the original house in the 1980s. The clients caught the self-build bug upon moving into the house as 'second generation' Segalists and soon found that the much-loved home had reached a point in its life cycle where repairs and adaptations were needed to keep it fit for modern life.

The refurbished home is full of warmth and light. Our adaptable design included 'pushing out' the original panelised construction to create larger rooms, replacing (and moving) windows to improve privacy and accessibility to the lush garden, and adding a thick layer of environmentally friendly insulation around the entire building to minimise drafts and keep the heat in. As a timber frame building there is low embodied carbon in the construction to begin with which was carried through to our material choices.

Complementary materials were procured to be as natural as possible - with wood fibre insulation chosen over more toxic plastic-based products, and EPDM rubber roofing over oil-based bitumen. Our depth of research and detailing experience allowed us to push the Segal philosophy further to enhance the family home in design and performance. Adaptability is woven into the Segal methodology which made demolition an unnecessary option in retrofitting the existing building. This allowed us to focus on what matters; reducing the carbon footprint and designing a home to enjoy.

Annual CO2 emissions data (requested in kg/m2/year) was provided as follows: Not calculated