BRITISH HOME DESIGN

We have a property which has been two separate homes for a long while and we are now trying to combine them into a single dwelling. We knew we would need an architect to figure out the best way of achieving the combination and we were delighted to come across Sami and her team at British Home Design. How to join the two part of the house - where to knock through, what to do with the stairs, best use of space, how to maximise storage... these were real challenges and making us scratch our heads. Sami immediately came up with a great design that addressed all these issues, and she had some innovative ideas that took the design to another level. Reassuringly, we showed her concept design to a neighbour who is a retired architect himself and he said the plans showed "great design intelligence". Our builder likes the plans and we showed the design to a kitchen specialist who said: "you have a great architect!" It was great to meet Sami on site at the beginning of the project and she came with her team: Nerys the architectural technician and Amanda the interior designer. It was clear they worked well as a team and fed off each other's ideas. Further down the line, Sami expertly sorted out planning consent for our external works (we are in a Conservation Area) and Nerys brought in a structural engineer to get us through the Building Regs process. Altogether a great team, reasonable prices and really nice to work with. We still have a long way to go, but BHD has given us a solid start and we feel we have a clear way forward. Well done Sami and team. Thank you. David and Jan

I’ve worked with sami at British home designs on multiple projects now and they continue to do a great job every time. Very reliable, easy to communicate with, and their plans and ideas are always clear and well put together. I really appreciate their consistency and professionalism. Highly recommended

It was a pleasure working with Sami to conceive our beautiful Victorian-style glasshouse. From the get-go, her professionalism and expertise shone through, guiding us through the process seamlessly. We're grateful for her help and are delighted with the result. Thank you, Sami!

Sami has provided exceptional service in supporting our self build project to convert a 250 year old barn into a family home. She took a VERY long list of our wants and desires and completely re-imagined the proposed layout into something which we love which still remains true to the history of the barn. We really liked how she structured her phases of work and how she kept us updated throughout. Her approach to planning is very thorough too, and she writes very persuasively to extol the merits of her applications.

I recently purchased an old cottage in Norfolk. Prior to completion i began my search for an architect as I knew the property was in need of a complete modernisation, extension and generally turning it into my dream home. During the initial search I spoke with Resi , another larger architectural group, and two local firms. One of these being British Home Design. Firstly Sami was actually the first to reach out. I appreciated the prompt but not pushy response, two of the other firms took 2 weeks to respond. We organised an intro call following a short online survey that took no longer than 5 mins. Sami came to the call prepared with her PoV, some ideas and a great overview of BHD - their style and achievements to date. In comparison to the other introductory calls I had with the others there really isn't a comparison. I found others to be too pushy, pitching generic or recycled ideas from other projects and I even had one tell me I'd be wasting my time with a particular feature as I'd find I'd never use it - almost prescribing what my lifestyle should involve. Sami was warm, had a very open mind and crucially open ears. A few months later (my completion took longer than expected) I had my meet & measure, it was great to meet Sami and continue our collaboration in person, I was surprised at how thorough she was, spending the entire day at the property, shortly after the 2d plans were ready and we were entering the exciting concept stage - all with timely updates along the way and collaboration via Pinterest, email or WhatsApp. We're nearing our planning application stage and I can confirm Samis style and approach has been nothing but consistent and expectation beating, during the concept design phase she took on feedback for 3 of her designs and returned a few weeks later with a plan that absolutely hit all the feedback right on the mark. It's rare to find a service provider that is technically excellent whilst possessing the ability to empathise and understand what a person "needs" and "wants" and transform these into an actionable plan and next steps. I'm really looking forward to continuing our collaboration throughout the rest of the stages and hopefully into the build. Finding Sami will have a life long impact on me as I know she'll deliver an incredible dream home that will bring delight to me and my family for decades to come. Thank you BHD!

I contacted Sami of BHD to discuss a kitchen project (structural walls out, reconfiguration, adding in a loo and utility etc) - and she came back to me immediately, full of enthusiasm and ideas. After an initial visit, which was not only fun but extremely informative and creative, Sami prepared about five outline plans, with visuals, for consideration. Thereafter we had a long Zoom presentation with Sami where she presented her ideas, and my husband and I then had time to combine all the ideas we loved from each plan to come up with the "ultimate" design, which Sami re-drew, complete with CGI visuals. We are absolutely thrilled with the new plan (see British Home Design project here on houzz called "Kitchen Layout in Norwich"). I think my words were WOW, FANTASTIC, WE LOVE IT! and am so glad we're working with Sami who is incredibly skilled, not only with her technical preparation, but her interior design flair too. We're now into the next stage of the project (the technical aspect of the reconfiguration) and all being well we hope to start the work next year. So to recap, I have nothing but praise for British Home Design and architect and interior designer Sami and am very glad I made that initial contact.

We engaged Sami at BHD as the Architect for our ground floor reconfiguration and extension project and have been very impressed with the service received. We opted for the VR presentation of our final plans which was fantastic. Through this experience we gained a much better understanding of the room proportions and how the whole proposed layout would flow. It also gave us the ability to view each room from all aspects, both 360 degrees horizontally and floor to ceiling. Sami also incorporated our chosen finishes into the VR presentation, so it really felt like we were in the finished rooms. The level of detail incorporated into the presentation was brilliant and I would highly recommend this service to anyone. BHD fulfilled our brief and exceeded our expectations.

British Home Design has proven to be prompt, honest, and professional, with a keen eye for detail. Our vision evolved into a strong yet elegant design with a wrap-around two-story expansion after they thoroughly examined our initial brief. They gave a range of options for each design stage, putting our minds at ease and really developing ideas into a strong cohesive plan. The split-level design based on the land contours gives it a wow factor and complements its surroundings, the well-thought-out bespoke designs greatly exceeded our expectations. We enthusiastically recommend British Home Design to everyone. Even when working with a challenging LPA agent, BHD have remained calm, dedicated, professional and reassuring throughout the process.

I have embarked on my first ever renovation project (ground floor extension, wrap around first floor extension and loft conversion) and was unaware of the process, timelines, costs and what I would be able to achieve. I initially engaged with two very well established, local architects who were very highly recommended, but after meeting with them I felt they were not engaged in the project nor would they communicate the process, complexities and what could be achieved but rather offer me bog-standard plans which they have done to other homes, rather than running through my home as a new bespoke project with plans to fit my requirements. I was incredibly lucky to have then discovered British Home Design. From my first contact the level of enthusiasm, collaboration and communication was clear. British Home Design understood the basic requirements of my project and provided me with an incredibly clear and concise plan on all the steps of the planning stages, costs and expectations as a part of our agreement. Once formally engaged with British Home Design , the initial on-site visit was excellent. The entire house was measured to exacting standards and even measured the outdoors in the rain!! The first design meeting with concept plans then followed (as clearly laid out in our schedule and timelines confirmed via excellent email communication). British Home Design presented an incredibly thorough and robust proposal of plan options and took the time to carefully explain each option and considered all of my requirements which I expressed prior and during the onsite visit. We have progressed now to submitting my finalised plans. I had a lot of ideas after our design meetings and in between design iterations and British Home Design took on board each of my requirements and read through my dozen emails and incorporated these into the final design and even made suggestions I had not considered or did not even know about which added so much more the plans and the beauty of the building and have now been incorporated. This has been by far the best, most exciting, insightful, hassle-free and stress-free experience. My plans are completely bespoke plans for my own home, not bog-standard, unconsidered and rushed plans. They clearly incorporating how I want to live and how to maximise the utilisation of all rooms and space. The communication, presentation and process has been beyond anything I expected. I cannot stress this enough. I cannot recommend British Home Design enough – I am so happy with everything they have provided me that I am writing such a long review. If you want bespoke plans creatively and carefully designed with an incredible architect - this is the one!