[
“We had to make a few compromises,” says Damion. “The house size was restricted by
planners to 2,500 sq feet and the height of the eaves to 7.9 meters, but if you are prepared to work with the planners you are more likely to get the house design you want”
surviving one of several similar properties built for ex-servicemen – had fallen into a poor state of repair by the time the couple bought the land in October 2011. “We had renovated and extended properties
but never self-built,” says Damion, who is National Sales Manager for Travis Perkins. “We had been looking for a plot of land for a long time but everything we saw was either too small or too expensive. We had often walked past the bungalow on the way to see my in-laws and one day saw the owner clearing away the weeds to reveal this beautiful plot of land.” Damion wrote to the owner to express an
]
interest in buying it and they agreed, on a hand- shake, a price of £250,000. The provison was that Damion and Melanie – who works in the Biotech industry – could have six months in which to sell their home of seven years, a Duke of Sutherland cottage with small rooms and low beams. “We had two young children at this point and
had outgrown the cottage,” says Damion. “We wanted more space and a bigger garden, and this was our chance to achieve that. Fortunately we sold our last house within three months.” But just as they sold the cottage, the Rothners
faced a major crossroads. Melanie had been offered a job in Australia and they had to
choose between self-building, or emigrating. “In the end we shared a bottle of wine and tossed a coin,” says Damion. “I think we were both relieved when it came up on the side of building.” The family bought a £7,000 caravan (which
they later sold on for £6,000) and pitched camp on the plot, then hired a project manager to take on the build. “We were both working full time and looking
after two young children and we didn’t want the stress or hassle of trying to manage a build at the same time,” says Damion. The plot came with outline planning
permission for a new house, but Damion and Melanie wanted something completely different and went back to planning with their design for a modern four-bedroom property. As part of the Oakworth group of companies, Benchmark Self Build can take a project right through from concept to completion, and in this instance the company were responsible for the design, plan- ning application, consent, building control and construction drawings. The house would be built in the same red brick, red roof tiles and faded timbers that had given the bungalow its distinc- tive style. “We had to make a few compro- mises,” says Damion. “The house size was restricted by planners to 2,500 sq feet and the
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