After getting off to a slow start thanks to the planners, the Walker family have finally created a modern European style eco-property, using a German package house company

WORDS & PICTURES KATY DONALDSON

The original building

FACT FILE

NAMES Terry & Sue Walker

OCCUPATIONS Retired property manager & IT analyst

LOCATION West Sussex

TYPE OF BUILD Self build

STYLE Contemporary

CONSTRUCTION METHOD Pre-manufactured timber frame

PROJECT ROUTE Turnkey

PLOT SIZE One acre

PLOT COST £635,000

HOUSE SIZE 300m²

PROJECT COST £582,650

PROJECT COST PER M2 £1,942

TOTAL COST £1,217,650

BUILDING WORK COMMENCED 2016

BUILDING WORK TOOK 18 weeks

Terry and Sue Walker had lived in Barnes, in south London, for years before they decided it was time to move out of the capital. The couple spent the next 24 months looking for the right place – either a renovation project or a plot of land to build their dream home. Their search area lay in a 50-mile arc south-west and south of London so they could still easily access the city to visit family.

Their house sold before they found the right opportunity, so the pair agreed a delayed completion date with the buyers to allow them time to find their perfect place. During their search, the couple only looked at properties where they could walk to amenities such as a local shop and a medical centre. “It was important for us that we didn’t always have to take the car if we wanted to go out,” says Terry.

Eventually they came across a 1930s bungalow that was ripe for replacement, with a large garden, in a small west Sussex village.

An open-plan kitchen-diner provides the Walkers with a social space which is good for entertaining family and friends

The tired dwelling was badly laid out and had many problems, including leaking single glazed windows (one even had plastic panes instead of glass!), botched wiring and very dubious plumbing. It seemed like a perfect candidate for demolition. Although it came with far more land than the couple would have liked – they would have preferred only a third of an acre or even less – the location was fantastic, so they went ahead and bought it. “here is also a brewery based in the village,” Terry says, “but I promise that wasn’t a deciding factor!”