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Medieval barn conversion

W hen Rob and Claire Colwill bought a dilapidated old stable complex by the sea, they took a ‘half-a-

million-pounds leap of faith’. Most people wouldn’t have given the assortment of run- down buildings a second glance, let alone gambled a small fortune on them, but the rusty old farm outhouses contained a golden nugget – a Grade II*-listed medieval barn.

Although it was on the verge of collapse, the barn’s stunning cruck frame was still intact, and Rob vowed to save it from wrack and ruin. ‘Our family was growing and we wanted to move to a bigger home,’ he says. ‘We were living in an Edwardian house by the beach in Bude, and didn’t want to move far. The barn was less than a kilometre away, and also had land for a large garden. We knew that we were taking a huge gamble, but we were confident we could make it work.’

The land and buildings, which the couple bought for well over the asking price, came with a 10-year-old house that also had a

BEFORE

Rob and Claire Colwill took on a listed Cornish barn, turning it into a contemporary family space

‘We saved a rare building to create a stunnıng home’

THE OWNERS Rob Colwill, who owns an estate agency, and his wife Claire, a graphic designer, (pictured above), live here with their daughters Isabelle, eight, Eliza, five, and Esme, two

THE PROPERTY A four-bedroom detached house, with five bathrooms, converted from a 700-year-old, Grade II*- listed medieval tithe barn with a raised cruck frame roof

THE LOCATION Bude, Cornwall

WHAT THEY SPENT The couple bought the land and farm buildings for £500,000 and spent around £700,000 on renovations. It has recently been valued at around £1.25million

FACT FILE

NEW SPACELeft A modern glass roof structure and a glazed walkway, featuring a Big Bang Foscarini suspension light from Amos Lighting, links the medieval section with the adjoining stone barn. The couple designed the walnut circular dining table, custom- made by Red Post Joinery, and the Liz leather chairs are by Cattelan Italia

ORIGINAL SHELLRight The Grade II*- listed barn was on the verge of collapse when the family first viewed it, so major renovation work was required

WORDS HEATHER DIXON PHOTOGRAPHS JODY STEWART

DESIGN TIPTwo extremes work well for a

conversion, such as mixing ‘light touch’ minimal detailing – glass

balustrading and frameless shower enclosures, for example – with solid rustic details, such as

rough plank wood cladding and exposed masonry

Medieval barn conversion

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manager’s occupancy condition attached to it from when it was a riding school. This stipulated that it could only be built for the manager to live in. Luckily, the family were able to have this lifted, and it gave them a place to live in during the conversion – if they could get planning permission.

Rob and Claire also agreed to wait six months for the previous owners to move out before eventually taking over the house. The delay gave them the chance to

assess the site, seek advice from an architect and structural engineer, and prepare the planning application to renovate and convert

the barn into one large dwelling. ‘The previous owners had unsuccessfully tried to turn it into a holiday let or several dwellings, but we wanted to turn it into one single family home for us,’ says Rob.

Their plans were wholeheartedly supported by English Heritage, who had placed the barn on its national risk register

and were keen to see it given a new lease of life, under the right circumstances.

Backed by the architects’ carefully considered approach, and with assurances that they would respect the integrity of the ancient building, Rob and Claire were finally granted planning consent to transform the barn into a 120ft-long upside-down house with high-vaulted ceilings. The main living area would be on the first floor to maximise the impact of the timber frame.

The barn was essentially in two halves – one side containing the medieval roof structure, and the other covered with a practical corrugated roof. The two sides would be united by a modern glass-and-steel mid-section – bridging the centuries.

KITCHENLeft An elegant system of ties prevents the walls from bowing from the roof. Alnostar Highline kitchen units from Bradburys, with Antarctica Corian

PLAYROOMBelow The girls have their own space tucked behind the kitchen, so still within easy reach of Claire and Rob. The shelving is from Kallax, and the wigwam was a gift

INTERIOR FINISHLeft The internal walls have been scratch-coated and plastered with Ecocork and lime, with the south elevation wall left as exposed stone to reference the original building. The oak flooring was supplied unfinished from Venables Oak

LIVING ROOMRight The medieval cruck frame has been painstakingly restored and is now the key feature of the first-floor living room. A wood-burning stove from Kernow Fires has been installed, with velvet sofas from Amos Lighting, accessorised with a Crane floor lamp and Cato rug from BoConcept

‘We felt obliged to save the barn and to do it

right, so it was always going to be a zero-

compromise project’

worktops, face the full length of the open-plan upper floor, creating a contemporary contrast to the oak flooring and beams. The appliances are by Miele, with a hot tap by Quooker

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Medieval barn conversion

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Building work began in January 2013, and the couple hired a local contractor they had known for years. ‘No one could guess what problems we would face, so it was impossible to work to a fixed contract,’ says Rob. ‘Fortunately, we had complete trust in the builder and paid by the hour.’

By this time, they had sold their previous home for £500,000, most of which went straight into the renovation budget. Rob project-managed the build between running his estate agency and, with Claire, raising their three children.

The walls of the barn were ‘straight and true’, so a mini digger was used to dig up the old concrete floors, lay drains and replace the flooring with a waterproof membrane and concrete slab run through with steel mesh. ‘The foundations were so deep that we didn’t find the bottom of them, so, although we are in a wetland area, we had no concerns about the stability of the barn,’ says Rob.

All the lintels were repaired or replaced with timber recycled from the site, and 14 6.5-metre-long green oak beams, which

BEFORE

had gone rotten, were replaced with new ones to create the first floor. Steel brackets were discreetly installed at the ends of each to serve as a hidden tie system that would prevent the walls bowing from the pressure of the roof. Next came the meticulous renovation of the stunning cruck roof timbers. A scaffold tower was built over the roof and sheeted with tarpaulin while specialist conservation carpenters dried out the timbers, inserting hidden steel supports where necessary to keep as many original beams as possible.

‘We decided it was better to fillet out the backs of the rotten ones and drop steel plates into them so they could be repaired, rather than replaced,’ says Rob. ‘This way, we managed to keep 95 per cent of the original roof, with the remainder replaced with green oak from our own trees.’ The medieval timbers, which were fitted with a protective modern rafter system over the top, took about four months to restore.

The newer side of the barn was stripped of its corrugated roof, the walls raised by a foot to bring them into line with the

ORIGINAL BARNRight The structure is still recognisable, and the existing agricultural buildings have been carefully restored and enhanced to offer the best of both worlds – a sense of history, and all the comfort and convenience of modern living

MASTER BEDROOMRight Light oak beams and natural light from the windows make the ground-floor bedrooms cosy, and a divan bed from Congdons features a bespoke reclaimed timber headboard. The large metallic Bellagio mirror from Ornamental Mirrors, rug from BoConcept and throw from The White Company add an opulent touch

RECLAIMED MATERIALSAbove With the entire building lime- pointed, Rob spoke to anyone who was demolishing a local building in order to source Delabole slate, which was then cut and prepared for the roof of the barn

HALLWAYRight A concrete floor laid by the builder, polished by JT Tiling & Flooring, gives a beautiful, hardwearing finish. The staircase, from Complete Stair Systems, includes a steel bridge, and the glass and steel roof section was supplied by The Patent Glazing Company

DESIGN TIPIf you are converting a barn or

similar space with an interesting feature roof structure, go for

upside-down living – this helps to retain the sense of volume that would be lost through

subdividing to create bedrooms

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Medieval barn conversion

FOR STOCKIST INFORMATION SEE PAGE 151

THE COSTSLandscaping

Materials and labourGarage and roundhouse Internal and

external joineryElectrics

Plumbing and sanitaryware

New roofs and steel Medieval roof repair

and slating Kitchen and utility

Fees Polished concrete

flooring TOTAL

£150,000£130,000

£75,000

£60,000 £55,000

£55,000£55,000

£40,000£35,000£30,000

£15,000£700,000

THE PLANS

GROUND FLOOR BEFORE

GROUND FLOOR AFTER

FIRST FLOOR BEFORE

FIRST FLOOR AFTER

The mid-section of the building is fitted with a glazed roof, creating a link between the medieval section and adjoining stone barn, which have together become a 120ft family home

Architect Bazeley Partnership, 01288 355557, bazeley-architects.co.ukConstruction Andy Rowe, 07866 467055Electrician Cook Electrical, 07970 100824, geleco.co.ukPlumber JP Midelton, 07970 490023Medieval conservation carpenter Henry Russell, 07966 777327Oak joinery Red Post JoineryGlass roof The Patent Glazing CompanyGreen oak timber Venables Oak

THE CONTACTS

medieval walls, five new A-frames built and fitted for the roof, and the whole roof structure fitted with Delabole salvage rag slate, which is exclusive to the region. The first fixes proved challenging because there were no voids in the floor joist system or walls, which meant ducts had to be created in the concrete floor for cables and pipes. Conservation windows and doors were installed and then the gaping ends of the two sides of the barn were fitted with a central steel structure, ready for glazing.

‘There was a delay so we had everything fitted and close to completion – except for a large tarpaulin covering the middle section,’ says Rob. ‘When the glass finally arrived it slotted into place like a perfect jigsaw.’

Rob and Claire resisted moving in until all the snagging was completed, ‘or we knew it would never get done’, but it was worth the wait. ‘It’s exceeded all our expectations,’ says Rob. ‘Our living space is compartmentalised, but with an open-plan feel. We felt obliged to save the barn and to do it right, so it was always going to be a zero-compromise project. As a result, we not only have an extraordinary, stunning home, but have also saved a beautiful building from crumbling away.’

BATHROOMAbove Amalfi vessel basins from Victoria + Albert Baths are set in a bespoke unit with slate countertop, complementing the surround of the Villeroy & Boch mirror above. Axor Citterio mixer taps complete the rustic look, all from Devon Bathroom Centre

GYM SPACERight A new garage built in the front yard has a gym above it. Planning permission has been secured for a triple garage, plus an indoor heated pool, in place of the old stables and outbuildings

My favourite spot‘The living room is warm and comfortable and features the stunning roof above. I can sit and gaze for hours at the intricacies of the oak.’

My top tip‘Find an excellent architect who really understands the building, what you are trying to achieve and how to work effectively with your local planning authority.’

Our best buy‘It wasn’t something that we bought, but we found some old boards from the stables, which were covered in horse dung. We cleaned them up and have used them to clad the bathrooms – they look fantastic!’

Go-to website‘Houzz is great for interior inspiration and visual ideas.’

What we’ve learnt‘We are very passionate about the property and wanted to get it right, but there were times when we felt very exposed and, in some ways, controlled by outside organisations. That took some adjusting to. We also learnt that you can never plan too far in advance – for example, I knew what bathroom fittings I wanted before we had even started the renovation.’

Future plans‘In June 2014, we were granted planning permission to demolish the manager’s house and build a modern house in its place, which we will eventually move into. In the meantime, we love every minute of living in the barn.’

Claire shares her tips for transforming a farm building into a contemporary home

Project notes

Above The living room, which features the barn’s original oak ceiling, is the couple’s favourite spot in the newly renovated space

Right Rob and Claire found houzz.co.uk to be very inspirational

Right The timber cladding used in the bathrooms is from the old stable buildings

Stable buildings

Loft space

Cruck frame tithe barn

Bathroom

Bedroom

Bathroom

Master bedroom

Hallway

Bedroom

Bath

Bed-room B

ath

Bath-room

Utility

Brid

ge

Snug/ home office

Kitchen

Dining area

Living area

Stone barn