Brief

The Purey Cust building in historic York was designed by the renowned York architect Walter Brierley, and built as a nursing home in 1916. The buildings which had been empty for several years were now to be transformed into 3 luxury apartments and eight high-end townhouses as part of a £10m conversion project. As part of the development it was decided to build an eco-friendly garden house next to the main building. The garden house had to fit in with its historic surroundings and it was important that the roof should not be seen from inside the grounds of York Minster, which is right next to the development.

Solution

A subterranean bedroom and bathroom and open plan living area were designed, and a sloping roof ensured that the apartment could not be seen from within the grounds of the Minster. Open light wells provided daylight to the bedroom and a cedar brise soleil was incorporated into the design.

Erecting the building was complex owing to the proximity of the Minster walls. LGSF panelised framing was carefully supplied to the site and was then erected by LGSF's installation team. Panels could be easily transported on to site and manoeuvred into position within tight spaces.  

Zinc standing seam walls and roof with cedar panelling were added to give a modern, attractive finish to the building.

Results

• Panelised frames formed the main building which were easy to transport and manoeuvre in the limited space

• An unobtrusive building was erected in an important historic area

• Creative design made great use of limited space