This 5 new-build house development is located within Highgate Hill/Hornsey Lane, a Conservation Area in North London. The primary massing of the terrace house is a play of extrusions and excavations.

The houses step back to continue the rhythm of the terraced houses down the road. The additional element of the turrett, a motif frequently found in the area, highlights the entrance to the homes whilst providing a more distinguishable corner. Vertical and horizontal articulation provides further interest to the facade. The predominant facade material is a high quality red-brown brick, in keeping with the predominant brick on street frontages in the area. Horizontal bands are highlighted with darker brick soldier courses and protruding stretcher courses.

This careful composition of contrasting brick surfaces is in keeping with the local vernacular, while providing surprising details and a high level of craftsmanship. The turrets are clad in ceramic tiles which help break the monolithic brick building, and add the colour of the aged copper monuments in the area to further create accent and playfulness in the way the facade is articulated, creating a balanced rhythm along the row of houses.

In addition to generous front gardens that set the front facades back from the street, each house has a large roof terrace on the second floor that serves as an elevated garden, shielded from public view and noise. At roof level, these terraces are open to the sky and partially screened from the road. They are unique spaces for an urban development and allow residents to put their own individual ‘green finger’ stamp on their homes.