Extensive work to this property meant Robert Dye Architects could pursue two objectives at once: the client wanted increased space and sense of openness; additionally we saw a chance to complete a meaningful contribution to the local streetscape we had started next door. The original mews houses at nos 3 and 5 were poorly re-modelled in the ‘70s: cramped, dark and introverted. Seeing our earlier rebuild and roof-floor addition at no. 3, our client asked us to realise the potential of no 5. Retaining the front wall, we rebuilt behind, expanding onto a slither of client-owned land to make a new end to the terrace. This added critical space to each floor and a new basement completed a 60% uplift. We unified the basement and ground floors with an open stair against a 2-storey front wall and a glass floor at the rear. A full-width glazed rear extension brought the courtyard garden into the house, while enlarged bedroom windows and an inset balcony dormer at the rear and glass dormers at the front opened the house to the sky. The design reinforces our earlier work next door, pairing the two properties and addressing the street anew. We articulate new elements to calmly assert their modernity whilst re-qualifying the mews as a historical asset.