The re-working of this 1920s two-storey, semi-detached house was driven by creating a better relationship with the generous garden at the rear that drops to a level of 1.5m below the existing ground floor level of the house. The current layout of the sloping patio and the imposing configuration of the shrubs and landscaping near the back of the house add to the detachment. The proposed partial internal excavation creates a split- level ground floor with the front of the house at the higher level orientated towards the quiet street and a level access to the south-facing garden at the rear.

The garage volume is incorporated into the house’s internal footprint; its language takes cues from the existing and at the same time expresses a new layer of history for the house and the street. Internally the new volume is defined by a new concrete frame that carries the upper bedroom floors and articulates the rhythm of the core living spaces.