When Crawley Borough Council found themselves with a challenge on their hands, they they came to us.

We’d worked with them before on projects including Gales Place, Crawley’s first ever Passivhaus-certified social housing. Now they needed to build 44 affordable homes in a sought after area near the centre of a popular park.

The new homes would have to stand comparison with the best available for sale in the area. They had to be energy efficient without using renewables. They had to blend seamlessly with the landscape. Above all, they had to be great places to live.

Our work on the flat plans and the planning application transformed the project. Taking residents’ needs into account, we laid out plans for real homes, with spacious rooms, future-proofed against a changing climate. As the client expected, our attention to detail at this stage would make a huge difference to peoples’ lives.

Many of the houses have dual aspect living rooms, facing both front and rear gardens. Kitchens in the flats are designed so busy parents can supervise kids playing in the adjacent living room. These are kitchens where families can eat together too.

We were also able to optimize Passivhaus features such as window positions that allow summer cooling and places for heat recovery ventilation where it’s most efficient.