Minster Road

This terraced house is in a quiet residential area of Oxford, between Cowley Road and Morrell Avenue. As is typical of Victorian terraced houses, the reception rooms were a reasonable size, but the kitchen was small with a yard to the side and there was only one shower room. Our clients asked us to extend the house and remodel it in a contemporary way to maximise its potential as a modern family home.

Our solution on the ground floor was to fill in the yard to the side of the original kitchen and add a new extension at the back of the house. This created a full width space around 10m long. It feels huge and now houses an open plan kitchen, dining and family space.

A vaulted ceiling mirrors the apex of the original roofline and brings in lots of natural light through large glass windows and roof lights. Folding glass doors connect this space with the garden. A utility room and cloakroom are cleverly hidden behind sliding doors.

We have kept the original front room as a quiet, cosy sitting room. The middle of the ground floor now opens into the newly extended kitchen and makes a perfect playroom, with views through to the garden.

The roof was removed and replaced with full-width and full-height dormer to create a master suite with a penthouse feel in the loft space. A picture window takes advantage of the property's elevated position with wonderful views.

We worked closely with Oxford City Council to ensure planning permission was granted and we have thoroughly enjoyed working with our clients to provide a modern, contemporary house transformation.