Design made simple · Est. 2014

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Case study SD / 01 · Residential

Two-Storey Rear Extension —
South Woodford, London

A full-width rear extension across both ground and first floors of an Edwardian semi-detached home — designed to disappear from the street and quietly transform daily life at the back.

Project
SD / 01
Location
South Woodford, London
Property
Edwardian semi-detached
Scope
Two-storey rear extension
Status
Designed & submitted
SD-100Site photograph · As existingNTS
The existing Edwardian semi-detached house from the street, before works
The house as found — front elevation untouched by the proposal.

The brief

More house at the back.
The same house at the front.

The owners wanted significantly more living space — a wider, lighter kitchen-diner downstairs and an extra bedroom above — without losing what they loved about the house in the first place.

The street-facing elevation was off-limits. So was the loft. The brief, in effect, was a quiet but ambitious one: extend down and up at the rear, match the existing brick and proportions exactly, and make the new work look as though it had always been there.

Starting point

A handsome Edwardian semi with classic proportions.

  • Symmetrical street frontage with decorative gabled bays.
  • Original brickwork, chimneys and timber sash detailing.
  • Front elevation retained entirely — no street-facing change.
SD-101Existing front elevation1:100
Existing front elevation drawing showing chimneys, gable and bay windows
Existing front elevation — retained as-is.

Proposed rear

A new back, drawn in the same hand as the old.

  • Full-width ground floor extension with a bay/oriel feature.
  • First-floor extension aligned above, no overhang or step-out.
  • Brick, fenestration and rooflines echo the existing house.
SD-102Proposed rear elevation1:100
Proposed rear elevation drawing with new ground and first floor extension
Proposed rear elevation — new work in the language of the existing.

Section

Cut through
the proposal.

  • Ground-floor rear extension 3.5 m deep, plus a 0.4 m bay/oriel window for daylight and view.
  • First-floor extension above, aligned with the existing rear wall.
  • External materials matched to the existing house — no contrasting feature box.
  • Existing loft kept entirely out of scope.
SD-103Proposed section1:100
Technical section drawing through the proposed rear extension
Section through the new ground and first floor extension.

In summary

"The most respectful extension is the one a passer-by never notices —
and the one the owners feel every single morning."
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Edwardian Semi · Wanstead→