NEW BUILD
Micro Cottages
LOW COST DWELLINGS FOR COUNTRY LIVING
BEAUTIFUL, COSY, SMALL COUNTRY COTTAGES.
Following our work with Kevin McCloud, we were asked to design a series of low-cost, traditional one bedroom cottages that are suitable for very small individual sites or plots in rural or semi-rural areas.
These compact and efficient homes are inspired by the simple, cosy, traditional small cottages that contribute so much to the character and quality of our beautiful villages. All of the homes are under 50 sq.m (538 sq.ft) and designed to cost less than £95,000. The external appearance is custom designed to suit each individual location.
Each cottage has an open-plan kitchen/living/dining room with a wood-burning stove, timber lined walls, floor, and ceilings. There is a snug bedroom, which is either at ground floor or carefully tucked into the roof space and reached by a small stair or ladder. There is also a flexible space which can be used as an office or perhaps a guest to stay. Each house is designed to be easily extended as lifestyle changes and budgets allow.
In order to minimise costs, the cottages are prefabricated using a 12 ft (3.6 m) and 8 ft (2.4 m) wide cross-laminated timber (CLT) panel system which allows a typical dwelling to be constructed in less than twelve weeks. Off-site fabrication and the compact size of each unit means that the overall build quality is very high.
The homes can be provided fully equipped and ready for occupation or as a “loose fit” open shell which lowers the initial cost and can be fitted-out later if required. If a bespoke design is needed (and finances permit), the cottage designs can also be handcrafted on site using traditional construction methods such as oak framing or local stone.
The levels of insulation, the efficiency of the design and overall quality of construction means that heating requirement is so low a conventional heating system is generally not required and the annual space heating energy of a typical cottage is less than £150 per year.
CLIENT: Private
COST: From £95,000