Webb.

Location: Newmarket

Built by: Baufritz (UK) Ltd

Images: © Baufritz (UK) Ltd

The Webbs home was a bit of a challenge. A narrow gap site on a sloping street and strict building provisions of conservative Newmarket made this new development on series of exciting twists.

By reinterpreting the neighbourhood an imposing and modern house was erected, which adapts perfectly by means of a roof that responds to the heights of the low bungalow next door and the higher house on the other side. Starting with the earthworks, through to foundations, house construction and all the way to the furnishings this home represents superb quality of living space on it's more than 260 sqm.

The clients, David and Jane Webb, were keen to build a contemporary home on a plot in the centre of Newmarket but they wanted something that suited their needs perfectly and made the most of the magnificent views over Tattersalls.

Jane and David worked with our architect to draw up the plans and planning permission was granted in just seven weeks. Owing to the urban location, the plot was fairly small (it is sandwiched between two other houses) therefore the design had to make the best use of the available space. As a result, the 350sqm house has been intelligently designed with a basement below to incorporate underground parking for David's cars.

The Exterior
The Webbs house is a contemporary design with extensive glazing to the front to make the most of the exceptional views. The house has a striking off-set pitched roof that gives the house a modern feel whilst maintaining continuity with the streetscape in which the other, more traditional looking homes, all have pitched roofs. At the front of the house there is a steep downward sloping driveway into the garage below. The basement was expertly constructed by Glatthaar, a leading European basement builder.

In the basement there is a double garage, turning area, plantroom and storage area with stairs leading up into the ground floor. The main entrance to the ground floor is to the side of the house. To the front of the house is a living room with extensive glazing and sliding windows opening out onto a large deck. There are internal sliding doors from the living room into the dining room which also has lots of glass to make the most of the view. The ground floor also a WC, accessed within the entrance hall and a kitchen and study to the rear, both with sliding doors onto the rear deck and overlooking the garden.

On the first floor there is a master bedroom with a large en-suite bathroom to the front, again with lots of glass to maximise the views. Next door is a music/TV room with sliding doors onto a balcony. On the first floor there is also a laundry room, two guest rooms and two shower rooms.

To ensure that they can enjoy consistently good air quality and to save valuable heating energy through heat recovery, a number of decentralised reverse fans (LTMs) with heat recovery were utilised in various locations throughout the house. The LTM extracts warm air from the room, passes it through the heat exchanger and the heat extracted from the air is stored in the unit. The fan changes direction and fresh air brought in from outside passes through the unit and is warmed by the stored heat before entering the room. In warm weather the effect is reversed, thus cooling the warmer outside air before it enters the house. The LTM units can be controlled from a central location, optimising performance.