QA207
Courtyard House
Project
QA207
Location
London
Category
Private Residential
Status
Completed
Winner of the 2025 RIBA London Awards
Quinn Architects’ transformation is a beautifully executed open-plan layout full of rich detailing. There is a generosity throughout the house that is reminiscent of the work of Louis Kahn or Luis Barragán. The open-plan internal layout flows beautifully; spaces overlap and borrow from adjoining spaces. The kitchen is central and the heart of the home and is celebrated by a large roof-light that brings light to the middle of the plan and a double-height space.
From the RIBA judges
Originally built in 1979 and tucked discreetly behind a Georgian terrace, this brick and timber mews house occupies a sensitive infill site within a conservation area. Now a 2025 RIBA London Award winner, and shortlisted for an AJ Award, AJ Retrofit & Reuse Award and Civic Trust Award, the project re-examines the house’s latent potential. While consent already existed for an additional storey, the original building suffered from low ceilings, poor thermal performance and a lack of daylight. Our proposal argued that a carefully considered increase in height could improve environmental performance and spatial quality while remaining faithful to the building’s original modernist character.
We tasked Quinn Architects with the challenge of modernising a unique mid-century home to meet the living and environmental needs of the 21st century, without compromising the integrity of the house’s original spirit. The resulting evolution builds upon, but does not compromise, the original Case Study ethos around which it was originally designed back in the 70s — that of open plan, simple volumes and panoramic windows overlooking exterior courtyard spaces.
Ruth, owner of Harfield Gardens House
With a focus on retrofitting and preserving modernist architecture, Quinn Architects ticked all the right boxes for Ruth, who sought to add a second storey and reform the interiors whilst keeping the spirit of the house intact.
The Modern House
Rather than demolition, the project prioritised retrofit and reuse of the existing fabric, transforming a cold, damp structure into a warm and generous family home. The first-floor soffit was raised and a new upper level inserted, set back so it reads as subservient to the original form. Window proportions and detailing were carefully calibrated to echo neighbouring buildings, while single-glazed openings were replaced with high-performance sliding doors and windows that preserve panoramic views into the bamboo-filled courtyards.
Internally, the plan is organised as a single flowing volume, with spaces that overlap and borrow from one another. The kitchen sits at the heart of the house, celebrated by a large rooflight and a double-height space that draws daylight deep into the plan. A new stair rises beneath this rooflight, its first tread floating clear of the original ground floor, transforming what were once dark and poorly ventilated areas into light-filled, social spaces that extend seamlessly into the sheltered front and rear gardens.
Influenced by English modernists such as John Winter, the project embraces clarity of structure and material honesty. Concrete, limed blockwork, timber, steel and glass are brought together in a restrained palette, with new construction aligning precisely with the old so that joints and coursing read as continuous. Executed with great care by Modernarc and supported by an engaged local authority, the building is intended to read as a cohesive whole, where old and new are inseparable.
While the footprint remains the same, our house has been transformed beautifully into a warm and welcoming home, dramatically opened in height, light, and with a seamless flow that works for us as a family
Client and owner of Harfield Gardens House
