Quarry House

The completed Housing21 scheme, Quarry House, was built by Bouygues for 33 integrated retirement community flats and associated communal facilities on a rural exception site in the South East. The objective was to offer older people the choice of remaining in a rural location when they can no longer manage in their own homes, encouraging them to remain part of the village community.

The scheme was developed to maximise views over the countryside to the north and is divided into three linked blocks that allow flats to have east-west aspects. The majority of the apartments have dual aspects, ensuring that all flats receive direct sunlight into the main living areas.

Due to the open nature of the existing site, it is intended that new planting be restricted mainly to the courtyards and at the entrance from Calleywell Lane. The remainder of the site, to the east running up to the wood and between the building and the lane, will be sown with a meadow flower mix and planted with groups of trees. This will allow the ‘garden’ to blend in with the open countryside beyond.

In designing the overall mass and the exterior of the integrated retirement community scheme, consideration was given both to the locality and the wider area in terms of style and form. Reference is made to typical larger clusters of buildings, such as farms, with the roofscape articulated with simple gables and the facades divided into units by the use of bays. The accommodation areas are linked together with lower sections to break up the mass when viewed from the surrounding area