This historic Guildhall in Suffolk was originally bought by the owners in 2006. The intention was to renovate the structure and convert this historic building into a home. The planning phase for this work took several years and there were significant planning issues that needed careful consideration.
Work on the guildhall started in May 2009 and took around a year to complete. The renovation involved stripping the structure of the building back to the bare timber frames. This required particularly sensitive planning as the guildhall is Grade II listed and adjacent barn curtilage listed.
The guildhall and barn conversion featured on Channels 4’s Grand Designs programme.
The project was overseen on-site by Whitworth and included careful restoration of the Guildhall using traditional methods to retrain the integrity of the original fabric, allowing it to remain in use and allowing maintenance for years to come.
The main barn itself was converted into a three-bedroom dwelling with lovely open living spaces and a new oak framed, glazed linking building between the barn and the Guildhall.
Special focus was given to making this historic conversion ecologically sympathetic, with a significant part of the budget dedicated to using traditional and sustainable materials. The guildhall was insulated to a very high standard, with a Daikin air-source heat pump installed to provide heat. Heat within this historic property is distributed in part by an under-floor heating system.
If you would like to discuss a historic building project with us please call on 01284 760421 or use our contact page…
To see further images and the episode featuring the project click HERE
