Clients with specific needs approached Baca to design their new residence. Their island site, approximately 1100m2 in size, is regularly impacted upon by flooding. Located in a beautiful setting in the River Thames, the existing house has been inundated with water on numerous occasions, prompting the Client to appoint Baca for the practice’s specialist flood expertise. The new 380m2 replacement dwelling will deliver 7 bedrooms, generous open space living areas and additional play & relax spaces. The latter are located on the flood resistant ground floor, which will prevent water entering. The first floor is elevated above the 1 in 100 years flood level and accessed by a bridge, allowing the inhabitants to access the property with ease, even during a major flood. During the 2014 flooding along the Thames, the Client’s entire island was flooded, despite the existence of various flood guards. That same year, the client commissioned Baca Architects to explore design ideas to rebuild their existing residence as a flood-resistant dwelling. Pre-application advice was sought from the Borough and the Environment Agency (EA) in July 2014 based on two alternative designs. Planning preferred ‘Option 2’ as the proposal would result in a building that is not considered to be materially larger than the existing dwelling and combined with improved flood mitigation measures would be compliant with local and national policy. The EA also reported a preference for ‘Option 2,’ as all principle floor levels would be elevated above the 1 in 100 years predicted flood levels, plus an allowance for climate change. Siting and Design - Proposed options for a replacement dwelling seek to reduce flood-risk through better design and making space for water, as well as reducing carbon emissions through improved building envelope performance. All primary living spaces are elevated above the 1% AEP flood level, including an allowance for climate change. The design maintains the bridge in its current location, with the alighting position and ramp remaining the same landside. However, to improve access and egress during a flood event, the bridge will be modified to connect to the first floor of the proposed building as well as connecting to ground floor level on the island. The flood risk assessment (FRA) confirms that the development is safe, it does not increase flood-risk and does not detrimentally affect third parties, in accordance with the objectives of the NPPF. The new house will be low in energy to run and spatially efficient, with high-quality design and materials utilised both inside and out.