Conversion of a Grade II* listed barn on the edge of Bath.
Threshing Barn
Conversion of a Derelict Grade II* Listed Barn
Situated in the Langridge Valley, the 17th Century Grade II* listed threshing barn was in an unstable condition and at risk of collapse. A solution was sought to satisfy the client’s wish to utilise the space and the conservation officer’s desire to repair and maintain both the historic structure and its volume. The brief was to provide ancillary accommodation to the adjacent farmhouse, including guest bedrooms, home office, kitchenette and bathrooms. This was to be contained within one third of the total volume, allowing the rest of the barn to retain its double-height proportions.
The new accommodation is expressed as a series of white lightweight boxes that echo stacked hay bales to the western end of the barn. This abstract composition conceals the open staircase and upper floor gallery that looks across the length of the barn. The historic stones walls were consolidated and the existing steel frame strengthened to support the new insulated roof. A wood boiler was installed within the adjoining outbuilding to provide heat and hot water to both the barn and house, using wood sourced from the estate.
Internally a clear definition is made between the new smooth white fabric and the historic rubble stone walls. Glazed screens are inserted within the original barn openings, which are expressed in oak frames where openable. Externally, the appearance of a traditional agricultural building is retained with oak shutters covering the new glazing and reclaimed clay pantiles replacing the corrugated metal roof.
