Amberley Castle is a unique luxury hotel located in the picturesque village of Amberley at the foot of the South Downs. The castle is a Grade I listed building and a schedule ancient monument. The 900-year-old castle is enclosed by a 60-foot curtain wall and working portcullis behind which operates an award winning luxury hotel offering the highest standards of food and service. Consarc were appointed as part of the client's core team. We worked very closely with the client and offer advice and technical support. We helped the client to develop a long-term vision and a road map for continual improvement to the hotel. Part of our role was also to provide direction of other specialists and acting as a mediator for the client. We acted in a design and advisory capacity on a number of sensitive refurbishments to upgrade the existing hotel rooms as well as key improvements to the back of house areas. We advised on a number of new build interventions and heritage regulatory considerations. I offered planning advice, dealt with the local planning office and English Heritage on behalf of the client and were granted planning consent following the delivery of complex and successful planning applications. Improvements to the Amberley Castle are particularly challenging due to the nature of the building. It is important to make sure the client understand their options and the site's restrictions in order to maximise the use of space. We have delivered clear feasibilities for each individual project, design studies within the historic context of the building, design and access statements and reports and client design presentations with different options.