Haven House

A home reimagined to grow with its family.

Sometimes the best move is no move at all. For our clients at Haven House, it wasn’t about finding a new house — it was about unlocking the full potential of the one they already loved. With a young family and deep roots in the local area, they chose to invest in their home and shape it for the years ahead.

Located within a conservation area, the house had character and charm, but the layout no longer supported family life. The goal was to create more space, better flow, and a clearer connection to the garden, without losing the home’s essential spirit.

The brief

From our earliest conversations, it was clear we shared a vision: to retain the best of what was there, while introducing something simple, modern and full of light.

The brief involved reworking an existing side garage and linked rear extension, then adding a modest new extension that tied the old and new elements together. This gave us the opportunity to reconfigure the ground floor, creating a suite of highly practical, family-friendly spaces including a new home office, utility, laundry room, and storage for coats and shoes.

To the rear, a large open-plan space now brings the family together for cooking, eating, relaxing and entertaining. A formal lounge remains at the front, providing balance and retreat

The design

The new form is clean, confident and understated. A black concrete tile surround frames the rear elevation, with warm larch cladding set back within. Two large pairs of sliding doors open fully to the garden, making the most of natural light and creating a seamless indoor–outdoor connection.

Behind the simplicity lies something smart: a combination of modest extensions and thoughtful structural work that gives this home a whole new dynamic, without overpowering its original architecture.

The planning process required sensitivity, given the conservation area status, but our collaborative approach with the local authority helped deliver a smooth path forward.

Materials and detail

This project brought together both architectural and interior design, allowing us to carry the same care and attention through every detail.

Working closely with our clients, we developed a natural material palette centred on birch ply and complementary muted tones. From the handmade kitchen to the media unit and study furniture, each element is connected and considered. Crittall-style glazed doors and white walls help light flow from one space to the next, while keeping things calm and cohesive.

The outcome

For the family, the transformation has been more than spatial, it’s emotional. A home that once felt tight now feels open, calm and alive with possibility.

Haven House is a home made for now and made to last — proof that with the right approach, even modest changes can make a meaningful difference.

“The team at Hobden Butler worked on reconfiguring and extending our 1970’s detached house. From the outset they listened to our requirements as a family and incorporated these along with his own ideas and architectural insight to come up with a stunning contemporary design, which met all of our needs and more.

Through the whole design process they adapted the design to our changing requests, offering advice and alternatives. We chose Hobden Butler because of their ability to manage a project from start to finish: from design, to planning permission, to carrying out the tender process all the way through to managing the project to completion.

The team’s knowledge and experience helped in managing the relationship with the builder and took away the apprehension and stress we feared would be part of the process. Richard and his team’s attention to detail was excellent and we now have a home, which has exceeded the expectations we had when we embarked on this project.”

– Keith & Adele, Haven House Clients