In leafy Elstree, Hertfordshire, Square Feet Architects created a new home for a family of four generations, including grandchildren and their 93 year-old great grandmother. The sculptural form and use of Danish Peterson red bricks add a distinctive modern character, in harmony with its environment. Reflecting the family’s strong bonds, the client and his wife asked Square Feet to create a beautiful and functional home for them, their children and grandchildren and their 93 year old mother. The house needed to be wheelchair accessible on the ground floor for his mother’s living accommodation, and offer fun activities for his children and grandchildren in other spaces. The new home replaces an unremarkable house and adds significant space without increasing height or visual impact, successfully securing planning approval. A close collaboration with the client allowed his own construction company to self-build the house whenever the workforce became available. The house has a strong form, but quiet presence, with the coal-fired red bricks adding an interesting texture and contemporary tone to the street. The new home was built within a similar footprint of the former house and protects the biodiversity of the garden. A basement level carved out below ground adds space and ensures appropriate scale above ground. Three family bedrooms, two bathrooms and a study are situated on the upper floor. Play spaces for younger family members on the new lower level include a cinema, snooker table, hot tub and steam room. The basement gains daylight from a lightwell at the rear.