Southwark (Parliament Politics Magazine) – A couple, Leo Wood and Rupert Scott have named their own road in Southwark, raising curiosity about their story of Coach House on Townsend Mews.
They chose Townsend Mews because they wanted to pay homage to the Horniman Museum, which was designed by Charles Harrison Townsend.
Mews because “it gave that sense of a hidden track”, says Leo, who runs interior design studio Kinder Design.
Rupert, who has been an architect for about 25 years, is the head of Open Practice Architecture.
Rupert and Leo have worked on four development projects of their own over the last ten years. The first was a conversion of a gin distillery in east London, followed by the Coach House, and two more projects they have worked on jointly.
The East Dulwich house is flooded with light from the floor-to-ceiling windows.
“It was an auction property,” Rupert explains. “It’s a former MOT garage and what was exciting about it was that it’s hidden away.”
However, they didn’t have any plans to move in and may not have known anything about the neighborhood when they purchased it.
Making the decision to make it their home during Covid, now, “we love the area”, says Rupert.
“We love the community and the vibe of south London.”
The design was “a bit of a sister project” to the gin distillery transformation.
“The palette there was concrete, wood, contemporary but warm, simple, understated, a very clever use of light. We were using the same sort of materials for the Coach House,”
says Leo.
Although the house faces north, Rupert describes how they incorporated light by placing pockets in the back and installing sunlights in the ceiling.
They claim that the local community has supported them during the process. Rupert praises Lewisham Council and says,
“They wanted to see a good piece of architecture that was sensitive and nicely designed.”
They retained Coach House’s side and rear walls from the original building.
“There’s a sustainability angle to reusing some of the existing buildings,”
says Rupert.
He explains that he thinks that an appreciation of historic architecture to a more recent date, for example, 20th-century architecture and later buildings, can be really celebrated for what they were trying to be at the time – and work with them, rather than knock them down and rebuild them.
Leo and Rupert combined their skills to build Coach House; according to Rupert, “there isn’t a fine dividing line between architecture and interiors.”
Leo participated in discussions over the entire construction and choices made for the house, and Rupert adds that an architect’s work “doesn’t stop at a certain point – the bigger the overlapping, the better.”
He explains that there is an overlap in things like storage; an architect should be thinking about it but maybe they don’t think about it in the depth that Leo might think about it, which is about exactly what’s going to be stored in those cupboards, or exactly what needs to be accessible and when. Interior design can offer that human connectivity.
Leo claims that everything was “fairly budget conscious” when it comes to furnishing Coach House’s interior.
She adds:
“I really like buying reclaimed or vintage furniture. So, most of the pieces here I’ve found at antique fairs or on eBay.
There are some really nice designer pieces that are investments, like the dining table. I’ve spent a long time looking for the right thing, and then if you find the right thing, it’s nice to invest in a piece of furniture that you can enjoy for a long time.
But really, the best way to do interiors is slowly and not to rush. If you’ve got the luxury of time, you can ask, what’s actually going to work there? Or how do I want that space to feel?”
Further advice they would share with anyone looking to take on a project such as this is that “doing your due diligence is super important”, says Rupert.
He explains there are many questions to ask before buying at auction:
“Talk to a planning consultant before you buy and find out if there is a reason the plot hasn’t got planned before.
Or ask, what do you think is possible on this site? And, obviously, look at the legals of it as well – are there reasons preventing development on the site?”
Rupert adds that planning budgets is hugely important, too, making sure that you are leaving a lot for contingencies. If you assume you can do it for X, you’ve got to leave contingency on top of that, because it will be spent over time.
And hopefully, those things taper towards spending a contingency, rather than being over budget.
According to Leo, their further recommendation would be to review the planning policy of your particular council, as it would differ depending on whether your project is in Lambeth, Southwark, or Lewisham.
and to get in touch with Rupert. “It’s important to take your time when building or remodeling your own house,” she explains.
Rupert and Leo both work as consultants.
“I offer half-day interior design consultancies, which people love, where you can bring your challenges and I can help you answer, what do I do about my living room?”
says Leo.
Rupert can run sessions to help draft a scheme or help people work out whether or not a site is viable.
The home that Leo and Rupert now have has been a happy place.
Leo says they have stepped a bit further out from the centre of town, but have gained so much in terms of how calm the area is, but also just how vibrant it is, too.
He added that they wax lyrical about how brilliant south London is.
How did the architects ensure the Coach house blended in with the surrounding mews building?
In order to establish a visual link with the nearby mews buildings, reclaimed London brick was purposefully used. The Coach House seemed more like a natural part of the area thanks to this choice of materials.
The building’s small, three-bedroom layout minimizes its visual impact and makes sure it does not dominate the surrounding architecture by adhering to the original structure’s footprint on the property.
The architects wanted to design a family house that is peaceful, functional, and doesn’t “shout its arrival.” By using this strategy, the Coach House was able to blend in with the current urban landscape without extra notice.
The interior has contemporary features like painted and plywood walls and an exposed aggregate concrete floor, while the outside merges in with the mews.
Without detracting from the building’s exterior appeal, this contrast between the classic façade and the modern inside enhances its distinctive character.