Advice depends on if it is an old stone barn in which case the planners will likely have strong views on window placement and you need to establish those limitations first. If it’s just an agricultural building then that’s a lot easier. Don’t forget you can get light into the centre with roof lights

You should also consider privacy, available outside space and parking. So this means it’s a pity to have the only entrance where you park as it means your principal room has a view of the side of a car and if you want to sit outside it’s in a carpark

Hi its breezeblock and tin. its at the end of a series of barns. my friend is going to farm the land but the front will be his garden. he could park there but i think he will have a fence round his garden and park before he gets to the garden.

One option

Interesting. thank you

I don't think the amount of open plan living space is enough for 4 bedrooms. It could be a very tight squeeze, Are the 4 bedrooms non-negociable as if they could manage with 3 it would provide more space for a decent kitchen or a slightly off the main space dining or snug/study. If all the bedrooms were occupied that is not a lot of living space for 4 adults/childen. May we have more information as to the owners living requirements?

So they have three children. i think they want room for each child to have their own bedroom. i will ask about how they use their house/space at the moment. I built my own house a long time ago and despite having a separate sitting and dining room and a study we spent all our time in the open plan kitchen dining sitting room or our bedrooms. it is the same in my current house where we all live together in the open plan part. Admittedly there are only 3 of us in the current house. Looking at Jonathan’s plan i wonder if there is a way to tweak the hall/utility to make more communal space. I suppose also that it will take a few years to be built so by then the eldest child will be mid teens and perhaps be thinking of going to university.

I preferred your original layout of splitting the bedrooms and bathrooms down each side of the floorplan and keeping the living area in the middle. It creates more privacy for everyone. You could have the youngest childs bedroom next to the adults on one of the sides. I think its a more efficient use of space as you do not have large passages or a foyer. Will rooflights be permitted?

Yeah, not sure about Jonathan's plan, the main living area only has one point of light and that is west-facing. having a lot of skylights in the living area can be impractical since it can be uncomfortable too bright or too hot midday. But not just light but also lack of view.

can I ask what is a reason the windows can only be placed south and west?

also, what is the area outside like the garden driveway, view, where would the location of the entrance to the house ideally be positioned?

also, what is the shape of the roof?

and what is the height inside?

any option to create some bedrooms upstairs in the eaves?

I think the square footage is comparable with many four bedroom houses in both plans - the kitchen and living space on both plans is about 45m squared which seems to be more than being built by many national house builders.

Hi

Thank you for your comments.

There are barns behind it so no light or space for windows on north and east. I dont think they will want windows facing a wall of a barn.

i think double doors and windows on the south side with sky lights would be sufficient for lighting that room. The skylights would face east so would get morning sun but hopefully not afternoon sun.

There are fields to the west and south sides with no public access so it will be quite private and not at all overlooked.

The view is to the south and that is where the garden will be.

The house will be approached from the east along the south but i guess the parking can be before the house

The roof line runs east west. I don’t think they want to go up, but will keep it mind.

Perhaps the partial second floor would be something they could prepare for but build later. The roof is tall.

And I think people who farm (and their kids)spend so much time outside that when you enter you need to prioritise a good sized hallway or porch for muddy boots and coats.

Yes Jonathan i said that to them. When we built our house we had a boot room utility for the pets and kids. We had a posh front door which we never used and a boot room at the back door. i think the kids will be outside a lot anyways but i guess they might get to teenage and want to spend more time inside.

At the beginning of this post I imagined that the barn was attached on two sides because of the requirement for windows on only two sides. Given it is detached I think that they should have windows on other sides- many houses in residential areas have side windows and only a metre to the boundary or neighbours only 2 metres away.

Its currently attached but there wont be any light even if there will be physical space (not sure if there will be or not). We have another barn conversion where a bedroom has restricted light and it is not very nice. its hard to explain but there are two rooms next to each other with similar sized windows, one with a view across a not very picturesque farmyard and one facing a wall with no view. The no view one makes you feel totally different and not in a good way.

Not all windows are for the view, but they can be higher up to bring in some natural light.

I would position the living space on the south side of the property so you have a good connection with the garden, for that indoor outdoor living.

I would keep the space above the living area clear and have a vaulted ceiling, but I would consider adding a floor above the bedrooms for an additional bedroom or two and a bathroom.

what are the kid's ages? ( sorry if that was already answered.)

Apologies the garden will be on the west (long side) and approach from the north. Not much sleep last night. yes i agree about vaulted ceiling in living area and perhaps ceiling in the bedrooms. i understand about Clerestory windows and love them but having lived without proper windows i dont think i would choose to have only clerestory or skylights in a bedroom.

Sorry the kids are 2, 7 and 10

When I did my previous plan I thought the access was on the south or west side and a building was attached on the north and east sides. Since that’s not the case I agree with Puir that windows (especially in secondary bedrooms) aren’t exclusively for a view, shutters can let light in but also help retain privacy and hide a less than perfect outlook. So I offer an alternative plan.

Separately if there is a good height to the building it makes sense to work out where there will be structural elements to the roof and then plan an upper floor.

Sorry i have had no sleep. Very naughty cat. I got muddled with my directions this morning. i think your first plan was pretty close to what they need. The garden is on the long side which faces west. There isn’t likely to be any opportunity for windows on the other sides. i have looked at their current house and the living accommodation is a similar size to your first plan.

Hi,

I would do something like this,

Move the master bedroom upstairs, so the master can have a decent walk-in closet and ensuite,

that way downstairs we can add the 3 kids' bedrooms to the west side and provide them a view, which leaves the east side for more functional areas, and a bathroom laundry, and a guest bedroom. Which can also be used by the parents for a bit until the 2-year-old is older and more independent.

The open-plan living area is positioned to the south, with a kitchen and dining area on the west side, and large bi-fold doors connecting the house to the garden.

Entrance with storage and bench ( that works as a mud room and main entrance).

I also added a cloakroom with pocket doors and a straight hallway. In the roof area, there is also room for a reading nook with a day bed and a work-from-home space, overlooking the downstairs living space.

I would also recomend good size velux windows for the master on west and east side, for the double aspect.

On east you could have just skylight, while on west I would add a few of this to get some view.

Thank you so much