S


erendipity led arah ruml and imon oberts to buy a modest holiday cottage on the east coast, and to later


relocate from London and make the area their permanent home. “We’d been looking for somewhere to spend our weekends when we came across Southwold, a small seaside town with a harbour,” explains imon. After viewing a property there, which wasn’t uite right for us, the owner mentioned a friend with another cottage for sale just up the road.” At first,  arah and industrial physicist imon had been somewhat deterred by the proximity of a busy road, but were swayed by the one acre plot, nestled in a hollow within a shallow valley and beside a tidal creek which attracts all manner of birds and wildlife. “There were no immediate neighbours, and the location really swung it for us, so we bought the old cottage back in  and enjoyed many happy times there over the years,” continues imon. riginally two th century reed cutters’ cottages, which were later combined to form one property, the building had stood empty for years after being ooded in . The previous owners had rectified damp issues by the time arah and imon purchased the property. e’d been thinking for some time that we wanted to improve the layout and overall performance, possibly by building a replacement house, but we weren’t clear what restrictions might apply,”


24 www.sbhonline.co.uk


says imon, who has a long-held interest in energy efficient buildings. The site is in a prominent position on the road into Southwold and was not an obvious choice for redevelopment. Located in internationally recognised wetland, and an Area of utstanding atural eauty A in the uffolk roads, it stands adjacent to a creek, reedbeds and a salt marsh which is designated as a Site of Special cientific nterest , creating a perfect storm of potential issues from a planning perspective. Any new building would also reuire a ood- resilient approach to construction. Simon and Sarah therefore needed to meet a demanding brief: to create a new building which would enhance the surroundings, respect the environment, and deal with the risks from ooding, while meeting exceptionally high energy standards appropriate to the st century and sustainable into the future. e asked if someone from the council planning department could advise whether it might be possible to build a house on stilts, to keep us above any potential ood water, and the planners then asked to see a design,” says Simon. “We took the decision to start big, so that we could always reduce the house sie later as part of any negotiation.”


sing an online  design tool, imon


produced a drawing of a large, elevated house, which the planners responded to with a long list


may/jun 2024


LOW POINT


“Being so open plan means that sound does travel, despite all the insulation.” – Simon


HIGH POINT


veryone comments on the view! We hadn’t really appreciated our outlook at the design stage, and the far- reaching views to which everyone gravitates.” – Simon


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