SHAFTESBURY ROAD HOUSE
Extension, Refurbishment & Garden Annex
Richmond, London. Completed 2023
INTRODUCTION
Shaftesbury Road House is a semi-basement garden flat in a Richmond conservation area, reworked from a one bedroom dwelling into a two bedroom home with a rear extension, a terraced garden and a detached garden annex.
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When acquired, the property was arranged around a fragmented layout, with limited connection to the rear garden and no clear central living space. Studio MASS was appointed from concept through to completion, developing the design within the constraints of the conservation setting and overseeing delivery on site.
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The new rear extension establishes an open plan kitchen, dining and living space with direct access to the garden. This centralised living area replaces the previously disconnected rooms, allowing natural light to reach deeper into the flat and providing a clear spatial focus. Large glazed doors open fully onto the terrace, dissolving the boundary between interior and exterior during warmer months.
THE OUTCOME
The reconfiguration also allowed for a second bedroom, improving the functionality of the property without compromising the proportions of the principal spaces.
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Externally, the garden presented both opportunity and challenge. Although generous in length, its levels were uneven and raised significantly above the internal floor. The landscape strategy introduced a level terrace immediately adjacent to the extension, creating a usable outdoor room directly connected to the living space. Beyond this, a series of stepped tiers lead through the garden, retaining a sense of depth while improving accessibility.
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At the far end of the site, a detached garden annex was introduced. Designed as a flexible structure, it provides a guest suite or independent workspace, extending the practical footprint of the home while remaining visually secondary within the garden setting.
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Conservation area status shaped this scheme rather than preventing it. Work at the rear, kept low and screened by the existing building, is a considerably easier proposition than anything that alters what the street sees. The flat's real constraint was never the designation. It was the ground level outside the back door.