within an RSPB nature reserve meant there
were certain restrictions. They were limited as
to what they could do in terms of extending
further because there was a covenant on the
garden and also because the property is
situated close to a quay. “It used to be
surrounded by water until they put the harbour
wall in,” explains Athena. A north-facing
courtyard would have been “useful” for an
extension but it contains a main drain not only
for their property, but also the local area. “We
were limited as to what we could do. We had
to make best use of it, reconfigure it,” she says.
For this reason the bulk of the work
undertaken was making good the existingcottage and extensions, bar one small
cantilevered steel extension – about three m^2 –
on the kitchen. “It was triangular so we
squared it off, so that we could have a kitchen-
diner where the doors open fully into the
garden.”
Because Athena and Mark wanted to make
changes to the exterior, they were forced to
put the project through local planning – a
process that caused some difficulty. During its
multiple renovations, the house – including the
cottage – had ended up with PVCu windows,
and the cottage’s original flintwork had been
plastered over. “It stood out like a sore
thumb,” Athena says. “The area is lots of flint,I