The refurbished basement of a late Georgian, early Victorian town house in North London has won the prestigious National Home Improvement Show (NHIS) award. It was the first time the award had been made and was so successful that it’s to be repeated in future years.
The award winners were property owners Duncan Tolson and Leslie Browning. It was sponsored by the NHIS, the National Home Improvement Council Educational Trust, TrustMark and Real Homes Magazine, and included £1000 worth of B&Q vouchers.
Also there were four excellent runner up projects covering a diverse range of home improvements such as a converted water mill, a glass side-extension to a farmhouse, plus two remodelled houses.
Andrew Leech, executive director of the NHIC, said: “Each project made a very valuable contribution to the home improvement arena and paid careful attention to energy efficiency. In fact, they were all so good it was extremely difficult to choose the winner!”
Tolson and Browning’s extension (see photo), designed by Roger Mears Architects, turned a dark kitchen/dining room and an unused utility room into a flexible living area for cooking, eating and entertaining.
The space is brightened by white painted walls and light timber was used on the floor plus there is a glass roof, with impressive glass beams, installed to help create the ‘open’ atmosphere the family was seeking to achieve. The lighting is on various circuits so that illumination can be switched on and off or subdued in order to create the appropriate atmosphere or mood!
The patio was widened to encourage a natural movement between the interior and exterior, resulting in a relaxed, minimalist design that retained the property’s fine Victorian-period features and characteristics.
With the addition of wall insulation and under floor heating the home’s energy efficiency level was significantly enhance, which improved the property’s energy rating. As well as using energy conservation techniques, the couple also sourced local and sustainable goods and materials to complete the refurbishment.
Duncan Tolson explained: “We aimed to keep the new space light and airy, consequently we’ve incorporated a lot of white surfaces and used light coloured timbers for the floor. The main thing we learned was that, right from the start of a project, you should make sure that every detail is exactly right!
“As a result we now have a very special area which has made us very happy. We have a finished home improvement project that is totally safe for the children and a great place to relax in.”
Photo shows: (l to r) Michael Homes, editor-in-chief of Real Homes, 
architect Roger Mears, who received the award on behalf of the winners, Roman Russocki, chief executive of TrustMark and Andrew Leech, executive director of the NHIC.
For images of the winning project please go to: http://ftp.ashcommunications.com/win and a video is at http://flashpoint2.silverstream.tv/idrop/flashcode.phd?vid=1300