REFLECTIONS

SAP: 72C (due to LPG gas heating)  Environmental Impact: 82B

Planning Constraints: Open Area of Local Significance (OALS), Area of Great Landscape Value (AGLV), Coastal Zone

Reflections is a low-impact, landscape-integrated home in Portwrinkle, Cornwall, designed to meet strict planning constraints within an Open Area of Local Significance. This four-bedroom property blends into its coastal surroundings with wildflower roofs, natural stone walls, and reclaimed sheep wool insulation. Built using a fabric-first approach, it offers high thermal performance, triple glazing, and passive solar design. The project enhances biodiversity, supports local materials and labour, and delivers exceptional indoor air quality. With panoramic sea views and minimal visual impact, Reflection sets a benchmark for sustainable architecture in sensitive coastal zones across Cornwall.

The extremely challenging client brief was to design a 4 bedroom house with every room benefiting from sea views without affecting or impeding the visual character of the site.  The concept was to sink the building into the landscape, take advantage of the topography and use the split levels to create rooms that look over an open plan living area.  The form was to be organic with wildflower roofs including a large underground detached double garage within a bund made from spoil from the site.  The idea being that when entering Portwrinkle it would be difficult to know a building was actually there and that it becomes part of the landscape.  The height of the building would also be critical to ensure pedestrians walking along the new pavement, provided as part of the scheme, could still see the backdrop of the sea over the wildflower hedge and wildflower roof.  Ensuring that the design did not have an adverse visual impact to the nearby Listed hotel, or other residents’ views, was also a key design criteria.

The concept focused on creating a four-bedroom home where every room enjoys sea views, while ensuring the building remains visually unobtrusive within its sensitive coastal setting. The design achieves this by partially sinking the structure into the landscape and using the site’s natural topography to form a series of split-level spaces overlooking a central open plan living area. Organic forms and wildflower roofs help the building merge seamlessly with its surroundings, while an underground double garage is concealed within a landscaped bund made from site spoil. The overall aim was for the home to appear as part of the landscape itself, with a low profile that preserves sea views for pedestrians and neighbouring properties, and respects the setting of the nearby listed hotel.

The building has been designed to nestle into the gradient and is part underground and with the green roof appears from the rear to be completely within the ground and part of the landscape.  Being part within the ground helps to reduce thermal heat loss, similarly with the large wild flower roof which incorporates a thick layer of substrate.  The building fabric is very thermally efficient and incorporates high levels of insulation, adopting a fabric first approach.  The floor insulation features a high performance PIR insulation with zero ozone depletion potential (ODP) and low global warming potential (GWP), the walls and roof are insulated with reclaimed sheep wool insulation which is a by-product from a local rug making tannery.

U-VALUES: Walls/Floor 0.13 W/m²K and Roof 0.14 W/m²K.

The large south facing glazing provides good levels of consistent natural light and passive solar gains not to mention the panoramic coastal views.  The large roof overhang reduces summer over-heating and high levelclerestory windows allow for summer purge ventilation and natural light to the rear of the building whilst retaining privacy from the road.  All windows feature triple glazing with average u-values of 0.13 W/m²K.

The harsh location of the site led to the choice of very robust traditional vernacular materials that require minimal maintenance and can stand the test of time, as good architecture should.  Materials were also chosen for their environmental credentials in terms of preference to local and recycled materials, then UK manufactured before considering imported materials.  The external walls are predominantly faced with local natural stone and pointed with lime.  Small areas of locally grown timber cladding have been stained black to prolong their life by reducing UV degradation which in turn reduces maintenance. The fascias are copper which were chosen for durability and echoes the copper mining history of Cornwall.  Consideration has been given to future de-commissioning of the building as a whole with the majority of materials being readily recyclable.  The use of lime mortars allow the stone to be easily re-used, the timber has been screw fixed so that it can be removed.  The aluminium windows, steelwork and copper are all highly recyclable and consist of high recycled content.  Natural and organic materials such as sheep’s wool and timber products can return to the ground.  The wildflower roof provides a micro biodiverse climate encouraging wildlife such as butterflies and bees with many of the wildflower species being indigenous to the locality. The ceiling within the main open plan space is a lightweight stretch ceiling designed to be quick to install, without the requirement of gypsum plaster, skim and paint, can be repaired and most of all is maintenance free, hygienic and wipe able.

The landscape design and material choices respond directly to the site’s exposed coastal environment, prioritising resilience, sustainability, and ecological enhancement. Robust, locally sourced materials such as natural stone and timber were selected for their longevity and minimal maintenance requirements, while copper fascias reference Cornwall’s historic mining heritage. The wildflower roof plays a vital ecological role, creating a biodiverse habitat that supports pollinators like bees and butterflies using native plant species. Environmental responsibility extends to the building’s entire lifecycle, with materials chosen for their recyclability and low embodied carbon. Lime mortar allows stone to be reused, screw-fixed timber cladding can be easily removed, and metals such as aluminium, steel, and copper have high recycled content. Natural materials, including sheep’s wool insulation and timber products, are biodegradable, ensuring the design maintains harmony with both the landscape and the environment for generations to come.

The building fabric is very thermally efficient and incorporates high levels of insulation, adopting a fabric first approach.  The floor insulation features a high performance PIR insulation with zero ozone depletion potential (ODP) and low global warming potential (GWP), the walls and roof are insulated with reclaimed sheep wool insulation which is a by-product from a local rug making tannery.

U-VALUES: Walls/Floor 0.13 W/m²K and Roof 0.14 W/m²K.

As the building was designed within an Open Area of Local Significance at the entrance to the village it was very visible and debatable whether the site should be developed at all.  After engaging with the parish council on a number of occasions we were able to gain their support, that of locals and of the planning officer.  Prior to the build there was a sense of excitement towards the development and also concerns about whether it would be delivered as intended.  Part of the planning gain was to provide a pavement around the site enabling safe access to the beach foot path.  In order to prove our intentions to the community the pavement and new dry stone hedging was one of the first jobs on site.  Following this we were astounded as to the many compliments throughout the build with no grumbles or complaints; in fact there was a sense of enthusiasm with people monitoring the build on a regular basis.  The building has been filmed and photographed by many admirers and Portwrinkle now has a gateway building to be proud of…even if it can’t be seen when entering the village due to the sensitive nature of the design that blends into the landscape