When Tom and Jennifer Allen bought a four-bedroom London Victorian in 2018, they knew the kitchen would be the focus of a forthcoming renovation. “We already had one child, and had plans to grow our family. As such, we wanted to create additional usable space,” says Tom. “We wanted a more open-plan, functional living area, with a kitchen dining zone that was bathed in natural light with easy access between the ground floor and the garden.”

After living in the house for a year, the couple had a clear idea of how they wanted to adapt the property. The upstairs had recently been decorated, and as such didn’t need much work—however other parts had obviously not been touched for some considerable time.

So, after thorough research, Tom and Jennifer got in touch with architect Amos Goldreich and his team in early 2019 to help transform the ground floor of their home. “Amos and his team have a distinctive, striking, and modern style which we felt could be integrated well with the other features of the house that we intended to retain,” explains Tom.

When the couple purchased the property, the rear ground-floor plan was divided into a separate kitchen and dining room, which were both incredibly dark and narrow. An old, thermally inefficient conservatory built in the ’90s was attached to the back of the house.

The clients asked Amos Goldreich and his team to design a new extension that would have separate spaces to gather whilst working from home, cooking, relaxing, and playing. “They wanted us to update the property in a way that would optimize and maximize the available space and to reconnect the different internal areas while leaving them clearly defined, and also open the ground floor up to the garden, too,” says Goldreich.

Goldreich and his team’s solution was to design one light-filled multipurpose space that the whole family could enjoy together—but with a broken plan layout so that different activities could take place at the same time within different zones.

With planning permission granted in July 2019 the couple, along with their son and newborn baby, moved into a nearby short-term rental in February 2020, and work began soon after with the demolition of the conservatory and site preparation for the new extension. Construction progressed smoothly for about six weeks until Covid-19 hit, causing a shortage of materials and disruption to the workforce due to lockdowns.

“The pandemic caused significant delays in obtaining materials, and in relation to other aspects of the build, which meant the project didn’t complete until November 2020,” says Tom.

“Unfortunately, we had only rented the property for six months, and so we had to return to the house effectively midway through the building work. It was more than habitable, but we had a temporary kitchen and no access to the majority of the downstairs. Doing that with a very young baby was incredibly difficult,” recalls Tom.

Despite the stresses of a new baby and a global pandemic, the couple are extremely pleased with the finished outcome and have no regrets.

As you walk through the front door, you now have a clear sightline through the hallway to the extension and beyond into the rear garden. The dining area is to the right, with a large table so that the family can come together during meal times. A lounge/play area lies in front, and the new kitchen is to the left.

“We chose a deep blue kitchen with plywood handle detailing to create a sense of harmony with the light tones of the pale timber and white walls,” says Goldreich. “The darker color helps balance and anchor the room.”

The kitchen is a mix of off-the-shelf Ikea cabinetry and custom veneer facades by Holte Studio. “We also added a white pocket sliding door to the downstairs WC to tie in with and complement the interior color scheme of the extension, and to help save space,” he says.

Exposed timber rafters join a clever shelving screen with open storage that serves as a permeable room divider between the sitting area and kitchen. “The rafters are made from a strong, structural steel with oak cladding,” explains Goldreich. “We chose to divide the space with bespoke permeable shelving to allow the family separate zones within the extension, giving each space a sense of identity and purpose rather than one long, open box.”

The shape of the roof also helps designate the two different functions of the extension. The sloping roof adds more volume to the kitchen, while the lounge/play area is more intimate.

The new extension is flooded with natural light thanks to the skylights overhead, the oversized patio door, and a large picture window. These elements provide views out into the garden and help cement an interior/exterior connection. “The window looks out into the garden and frames some of the really old apple trees,” explains Jennifer. “Our children love to sit and use the window seat as a play area,” she says.

Certain materials were chosen to further emphasize the indoor/outdoor connection. For example, the flooring—a muted concrete tile that is both durable and easy to maintain—has been used in both the extension and in the garden area. What’s more, all the walls have been painted white, and the extension is clad in white bricks.

“It helps to bounce light around the new interiors, helping to emphasize the freshness and newness, and create a clear, distinct separation from the existing part of the semidetached late-Victorian London home,” explains Goldreich.

“We see the garden as soon as we enter the house now, which is a nice way to arrive home,” says Tom. “The extension has really had an impact on the entire property; when our son looks out of his window on the first floor, he sees a beautiful green roof that merges with the garden. We all have our own space within the extension too, so we’re able to share the space while still feeling like we have our own zones for cooking, reading, doing work or homework, and enjoying the garden and natural light that now filters in.”

More from Amos Goldreich Architecture:

A Glass Courtyard Brings the Garden Inside a London Terrace House

A London Terrace House Gets a Luminous Expansion

Project Credits:

Architect: Amos Goldreich Architecture / @agarchitecture

Contractor: AODS Building

ContractorsSurveyor: Thomas & Thomas Party Wall Surveyors

Joinery: AODS Building Contractors

Kitchen: Holte Studio / @holte.studio

Kitchen: Ikea / @ikeauk

Paint: Dulux / @duluxuk

Tiles: Calma Nuvola

Glazed doors: Idealcombi / @idealcombiuk

Glazing: 1st Folding Sliding Doors / @1st_folding_sliding_doors

Appears In

A Glowing Extension Fills a London Victorian With Sunlight and Garden Views