Room Tour: A 1950s House Gains a Modern Extension
A downstairs add-on gave this family a beautiful kitchen-diner, plus space for a cloakroom, shower room and utility area
Architect Jo Townshend was perhaps the perfect choice for overhauling the downstairs of this post-war Span house. Not only does she admire the architecture of the iconic Span housing developments, which were the idea of renowned British designer and architect Eric Lyons, but she herself lives in a Span property. “I love the open-plan living arrangements and the walls of glass, and the relationship of the houses to their surrounding landscape,” she says. Townshend also loves the asymmetric elevations of the houses and the playful use of materials, plus the sense of community that these housing developments nurture. Any downsides? “Span houses were designed for the needs of the families in the 1950s,” she says, “so they are beautiful, but very small.”
The new extension is three metres deep and was allowed under Permitted Development rights. To cope with the demands of a growing family, the owners wanted a spacious, open-plan kitchen-diner and a downstairs cloakroom and utility area. “The greatest challenge was keeping the flow of the space while inserting the new utility area,” says Townshend.
The kitchen was always at the rear of the house, but has been moved further back into the extension to allow the WC, shower room and utility area to be installed between the living room and the kitchen. The result is a neat, L-shaped kitchen with a dining table at the centre of the room.
“We ended up choosing this layout because it was the best way of maximising the connection between indoor and outdoor spaces,” says Townshend. “The layout also pushes the kitchen preparation to the sides, allowing activities such as children’s play and dining to happen freely. Not only that, but the WC, shower and utility space takes up the central area of the ground floor, so the noise and visual clutter of the laundry is now hidden.”
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“We ended up choosing this layout because it was the best way of maximising the connection between indoor and outdoor spaces,” says Townshend. “The layout also pushes the kitchen preparation to the sides, allowing activities such as children’s play and dining to happen freely. Not only that, but the WC, shower and utility space takes up the central area of the ground floor, so the noise and visual clutter of the laundry is now hidden.”
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Hard-wearing and easy to keep clean, the grey laminate kitchen doors are offset with a granite worktop and Prussian blue metro tiles for the splashback.
The entire space is flooded with natural light, thanks to the sizeable roof light. “We simply treated the ceiling as an element in itself,” says Townshend. “The roof light is centred between obvious structural elements, allowing enough space around its perimeter to comfortably fit enough recessed spotlights to create generous task lighting for the evenings and dark months.”
Wall tiles, Topps Tiles.
The entire space is flooded with natural light, thanks to the sizeable roof light. “We simply treated the ceiling as an element in itself,” says Townshend. “The roof light is centred between obvious structural elements, allowing enough space around its perimeter to comfortably fit enough recessed spotlights to create generous task lighting for the evenings and dark months.”
Wall tiles, Topps Tiles.
The new extension offers great views of the garden. “We often recommend sliding doors over bifolds, as we remind our customers that most of the time the doors will be closed, and that you need to like the look of them closed and not be overly influenced by how they look when open,” says Townshend, “which probably won’t be as often as you would hope! Also, stacked folded doors need to be accommodated, while sliding versions are more in keeping with this era of housing.”
An eclectic mix of coloured dining chairs and framed artworks creates a bespoke, homely ambience in the new extension. “The flooring is a medium-wide format, oak engineered board,” says Townshend.
A happy marriage of vintage treasures, such as the antique armoire, and modern fittings, including the flat-fronted contemporary kitchen units, work well in the new space. A neat under-stairs office (just seen) utilises every inch of space in this 1950s Span house.
Take a tour of a 1960s Span house in Buckinghamshire
Take a tour of a 1960s Span house in Buckinghamshire
A view of the new extension with sliding doors leading to the garden.
Retro-style furniture in earthy shades in the front living space pitches the tone for the rest of the ground floor.
The new WC, shower and utility area is sandwiched between this space and the kitchen at the back.
The new WC, shower and utility area is sandwiched between this space and the kitchen at the back.
The front of the original 1957 Span house, which is part of ‘The Keep’ post-war housing development that’s celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.
What do you think of the new extension on this 1950s Span house? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
What do you think of the new extension on this 1950s Span house? Share your thoughts in the Comments section.
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Who lives here A professional couple and their two young children
Location Blackheath, London
Property A post-war Span house built in 1957
Size 3 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and a WC, shower room and utility area
Architect Jo Townshend of Jo Townshend Architects did the extension
Photos by Peter Landers
Although it had great proportions and lots of natural light, this home needed extending to cope with the busy lifestyle of a young family. “These Span houses were built with three bedrooms and one bathroom,” says Townshend. “My company got involved with the refurbishment of the ground floor, which included a kitchen extension and fitting in a downstairs cloakroom-shower-utility area. For a growing family, this has become a great benefit, while being hidden acoustically and aesthetically into the new scheme.”