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elocating between continents isn’t an easy thing to do and when James and Amy Savage decided to return permanently to England in 2019, they started the search for their new home by looking at a map. “We didn’t want to swap Hong Kong for London,” says Amy, an accountant who grew up in the capital. “James’ sister lives four miles away and we had visited Wiltshire, so we knew it.” Tucked down a private drive among a range


of former farm buildings converted in the early 2000s, they found an unusual property. Two single-storey byres were linked by a simple glazed corridor to form a ‘U’ shape, with a courtyard in the middle, entered via a gate. The building was functional, but uninspiring and their reactions were mixed.


“I loved it,” admits James, who, as a venture capitalist, clearly enoys fi nding the potential in proposals. ut my hated it at fi rst. The planting in the courtyard made it feel closed in, with a little farm gate and an oil tank by the entrance.” Four years later, those buildings have become a single cohesive space that retains the ‘U’ shape, but the two original stone byres have had a comprehensive renovation, upgrade and changes to layout, while the simple glazed corridor has been replaced by a cutting- edge glass and timber extension housing an exceptional open-plan kitchen and dining room. There are also four bedrooms, two sitting rooms


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and a beautifully landscaped courtyard garden that is integral to the design. The journey to this point was characterised by risks and delays, but the couple have been able to navigate it so successfully thanks to their own fi nancial and management expertise and fi nding the right architect in Rob Elkins, of architect- led design and build practice, Artel31. Rob’s innovative and sustainable approach to design chimed with that of James and Amy. “We called Rob before we bought it to consider adding skylights [in the stone byres],” says James. The couple then threw the dice and bought the property without planning permission for the extension or other works. “It was high risk,” concedes James. “But we could have lived with it as it was, provided we got skylights.” James and Amy’s inspiration for the project was their experience of living overseas. “We’ve spent a lot of time in Hong Kong and also in Australia, where that inside/outside living is normal and it infl uenced what we did here, says James. “I’m the son of an architect and I love ‘glass box’ designs.” ob adds hen we fi rst visited the barns, they felt very disconnected, which although benefi cial from an energy usage point of view, meant that children and guests felt as if they were staying in a separate house. The new kitchen and dining area opens to the garden and forms a wonderful gathering point.” Yet making that vision come to life took four


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