The site is a single dwelling, detached, house together with various ancillary outbuildings, set within a curtilage of approximately half an acre. The site is deemed a Listed Building of Grade II status, situated within: a Conservation Area, an Archaeological Area, a Rural Area beyond the Green Belt, a Countryside Area and a Landscape Conservation Area. This planning context resulted in difficulties experienced by the clients a number of times when they had previously sought to obtain planning permission to extend the Listed Building. Therefore a key objective in the external design of the extension was identified and adhered to: the introduction of a building that sits both comfortably yet subserviently with the main house; respecting both the visual integrity, or 'completeness' in form, that the main house possesses together with the visual amenity of the Conservation Area. The extension embodies four primary design moves that go to make up this objective: the placement of the extension to the rear of the main house, the separation of the extension from the main house, the articulation of the extension's roofscape and finally, the simplicity in the extension's form and use of materials. The proposal comprises a double height study space, W.C., entrance hallway and external porch. The extension offers an opportunity to address a 'quirk' of the site: that of arrival at the property. Arrival, which is normally by car, is via a driveway located in the north western corner of the site. The driveway wholly by-passes the original front door of the house delivering visitors instead to a side door located on the north west elevation. By introducing a porch and hallway, with an entrance door to the property, within the extension, this, in conjunction with a glass link that connects with the original side doorway, provides a recognisable 'front door threshold' relating more successfully with the existing driveway space. By placing the extension to rear of the main house, this acts to preserve the visual integrity of the main front elevation of the property by allowing the existing north west elevation of the main house to be seen. Its placement to the rear also reinforces the subservient and subordinate nature of the extension appearing as an annex to the main house. The extension is separated from the main house by a glass access link that connects with an existing doorway on the north west elevation. This allows the existing form of the house to be visually 'readable' in its entirety. Similarly by articulating the roofs of the extension such that there is a low flat roof immediately adjacent to existing house provides visual clarity by allowing the diagonal lines of each pitched roof (both of the original house and the extension) to remain visually separate, particularly when viewed from the north west across the village green opposite. The extension is simple in form topped by a benign gable ended pitched roof (the pitch angle matches that of the main house), further reinforcing subservience and 'annex' style qualities. The choice of materials - clay tiles, white painted render and untreated timber board cladding - respect both the main house and the rural context. Combining these more 'traditional' materials with polyester powder aluminium (for windows, fascias and rainwater goods) provides an opportunity to introduce clean and contemporary detailing to the project.