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Salmen House

Newham

Project Details

£100,000 to £249,999

Brownfield site, New Build

Practice

Office S&M Architects

208 Bradbury Works , 3 Bradbury Street , London , Greater London , N16 8JN

This new build-to-rent house, with textured render and terrazzo details, contains generous vertical spaces on a constrained corner site. Bookending a mid-century terrace in Plaistow this three bed, three bath house makes effective use of a tight corner plot. Salmen House was designed by the architects Office S&M to be built and let by professional landlord My Property & Home, who had purchased an end of terrace garden suitable for a two-storey infill house. Though rented, the house is designed as a unique home, so that tenants feel ownership of the property. The acute angle of the corner site is celebrated throughout the design, in both plan and section, to give spaces that accentuate their volume, while disguising their efficient footprint. Each space has natural light and views from two directions, and views from, into, and through these corners create multiple outlooks within each room. The horizontal circulation is one continuous view from the cranked front door through to the rear garden, while the staircase opens into a generous triple height space that pulls your gaze upwards. This generosity has not come at a price. The house was built for £205,000 and to a lasting specification. While clearly opposing the New London Vernacular, the solid wall construction with a single skin of blockwork meant that the superstructure was erected rapidly, and the entire project took just over six months to complete. By working closely with the structural engineer to take structure away, rather than adding it in, space was maximised to create four-meter-tall bedrooms, exposed beam ceilings, and a triple height staircase.