Lodge living

Nestled in woodland, Matt and Jo Trench’s barn-style house has been designed to fit into its surroundings perfectly

WORDS JANE CRITTENDEN PHOTOS ALISTAIR NICHOLLS

THE TRENCH FILE

NAMES Matt Jo Trench

OCCUPATIONS MD of a building contractor teacher

LOCATION Hampshire

TYPE OF BUILD Self build

STYLE Garden lodge

CONSTRUCTION METHOD Oak frame

PLOT SIZE 0.66 acres

LAND COST £312,500

BOUGHT 2011

HOUSE SIZE 167m²

PROJECT COST £354,100

PROJECT COST PER M2 £2,120

TOTAL COST £666,600

BUILDING WORK COMMENCED September 2012

BUILDING WORK TOOK Eight months

CURRENT VALUE £950,000

Matt Trench and his wife, Jo, are no strangers to self building – they constructed their own home eight years ago on a six acre plot in the South Downs national park in Hampshire. However, an acre of land bordering the road in front of their house didn’t belong to them. So when it came onto the market in 2011 with planning permission for a new bungalow, Matt was determined to buy it. “This is wooded countryside and we look out across the hills, so I didn’t want someone putting up an ugly bungalow that would spoil the views,” he says.

A tempting prospect

The site was on the market at offers over £250,000 and there was plenty of interest. Matt decided to aim high and paid £312,500 to secure the purchase. He then left the plot untouched for a year. “I didn’t actually plan to build anything at first; but I do run a property development business, so I’m always looking for new opportunities,” he says. “I suppose it was inevitable I would do something.”

About a year later, Matt started to work on a design for an oak frame building that would nestle into the woodland setting. He was keen for it to be subservient to the couple’s classically-styled self build home, and hit upon the idea of a lodge that would appear to be an original barn belonging to the main house.