Sydenham self-build success story: a beautiful mid-century-inspired contemporary family home - Grand Designs Magazine

Sydenham self-build success story: a beautiful mid-century-inspired contemporary family home

We went to meet a south London family who have self-built a striking, sustainable modern home that’s design-led but super liveable and homely feeling. Come take a look…

By Mary Richards |

The beautiful home that Andy Heath and Jacqui Esimaje-Heath have built for themselves and their son Lucas is a testament to both the couple’s professional skills, and their eye for design.

Teamwork

The synergy between their skills has enabled them to design and build an exceptional family home in sought-after Sydenham, south east London.

The new build reflects Andy’s exceptional ability as an architect, and property developer Jacqui’s tenacity in finding a suitable plot – as well their joint eye for detail and facility with colour.

Living room in the Sydenham self-build house with big sofas and sculptural light fittings

The main open-plan living area is full of colour, texture and visual interest. But it’s also a very welcoming family space Image credit: Summit Group

A decade in the making, their home is also a tribute to their patience, determination and careful planning.

Andy and Jacqui first met at Hull School of Architecture in 1990. On graduating, they moved to London where Andy pursued a career as an architect, ending up as a partner in an architectural practice where he designed large housing schemes.

Jacqui, meanwhile, pursued a career in social housing and residential development.

Like so many architects, Andy dreamt of building his own home. But plots in London are few and far between.

That’s where Jacqui’s role became pivotal. As she combed south London looking for sites suitable to develop for social-housing schemes, she also kept an eye out for a plot that would suit her family’s build.

Andy and Jacquie Heath in the courtyard of their Sydenham self-build

Andy and Jacqui have built the home of their dreams Image credit: Summit Group

Scouring south London

Jacqui says, “Over the years, we made offers and approaches on various sites. I looked literally everywhere in south east London – pretty much every single road.

“We were happy to consider really quite unusual and subtle sites – some that the owners hadn’t even thought of as potential building plots. So, over the years, we approached loads of people.

Internal courtyard at Sydenham self-build

The internal courtyard blurs the boundaries between inside and outside and brings light into the heart of the home Image credit: Summit Group

“We got quite far along the process on a site in nearby Brockley, but it was so challenged.

“They wanted a lot of money for it, and we were always going to be building something that wasn’t as big as we wanted. We were beginning to give up hope of finding a site…”

Finding the perfect plot

Staircase at Sydenham self-build

The oak used throughout the house brings warm tones and biophillic pleasure. Image credit: Summit Group

Eventually, all Jacqui’s hard work paid off, and she found their current 30 x 9m sloping site on a suburban road near the top of Sydenham Hill.

At the time it was occupied by a double garage that went with the 1930s house across the road. Each of the original houses on the street had its own piece of land on the opposite side of the road.

Originally gardens, these had been built on in a piecemeal fashion over the decades, with garages, sheds etc.

Latterly, the last of these have been sold off for redevelopment. So, alongside the Heaths on the south side of the street, there’s a real variety of very different homes built in different decades.

Master bedroom in Sydenham self-build

The master bedroom incorporates a clever headboard cum storage unit with a dressing area behind it. Image credit: Summit Group

Jacqui explains, “I’d literally gone all round the houses. Then, in 2008, on one of my searches for planning applications, this place popped up.

“The owner had got outline permission to redevelop his garage. I approached him and he said, ‘Yes, we want to sell. We were going to put it in an auction, but we’d rather sell direct.’ So, we offered the auction guide price. And the rest is history.”

Master bathroom in Sydenham self-build

Using the same sanitaryware and tiles in all the bathrooms gives a consistency of design and made for more cost-effective purchasing. Image credit: Summit Group

Plot secured, it was over to Andy to draw up plans for their ‘grand design’.

At that point, the couple lived in nearby Crystal Palace in a Mid-Century townhouse, and echoes of the hip, Mid-Century style of their former home can clearly be seen in their new abode: in its clean lines, minimalism, extensive use of timber, large windows, indoor/outdoor features, and built-ins.

This is a home designed by someone with a real love for, and understanding of, Modern architecture.

Traditionally an affluent area of south London, Sydenham lies between Crystal Palace and Dulwich.

Sydenham Hill is part of the Norwood Ridge, an area of higher ground plum in the middle of south London.

Andy and Jacqui’s new home faces south east, with uninterrupted views out over London to the North Downs in Kent.

A decade of waiting

Details of woodwork and cupboards

It’s all about the details – from handle-free cupboards to just the right light fittings. Image credit: Summit Group

It would take more than a decade of delayed gratification before their self-build plans would finally begin to materialise.

One very important reason for the delay was the birth of son Lucas in 2010. Another was their desire to save up before beginning the build.

Andy says, “We didn’t want to start and then have to stop. We wanted to make sure we were really ready, with all the money in place, and the contingency funds we needed.”

Jacqui adds, “By the time we built, we were in a much better financial position, which enabled us to enhance things as we went along rather than having to cut them back.”

Rising costs

Sitting area in Sydenham self-build filled with art

A home full of art and heart: thanks to the MVHR system the wood-burner gets very little use. Image credit: Summit Group

It’s a good job they had their financial house in order, because when they finally started building, they were hit with a triple whammy of material-cost increases thanks to Brexit, Covid, and the war in the Ukraine.

A decade holding the plot also meant a decade of mulling, material research, and design refinement for Andy.

And that extra honing time can really be seen in the final, strikingly effective design and beautiful apparently effortless detailing.

Special spec

Internal courtyard at Sydenham self-build

In summer the Heaths open the doors to their internal courtyard and use is as a shot-cut through the home. Image credit: Summit Group

Andy says, “Our contract with our builders allowed for us as clients to supply lots of components and materials, which gave us more control over prices and final design specs.”

Being in the business, and all that time to research materials, allowed Andy and Jacqui to source some extra special materials and fixtures that help set their building apart.

The triple-glazed, bespoke oak Hajom lift-and-slide exterior doors from Sweden are one of Andy’s favourite features.

Meanwhile, the long-format, Randers Tegl Ultima bricks from Denmark in white and multi-grey finish give the brickwork a distinctive handcrafted texture, and bring visual interest to the house’s frontage.

These long, shallow bricks with their unique, slightly curved shape were a source of bemusement initially to the brickies on the project, who nicknamed them ‘banana bricks’ and were unsure how to best work with such an unfamiliar stock.

But, after some initial bemusement, they soon got the hang of laying them.

Good relationship with the builders

The sitting room at the Sydenham self-build

The unusual Danish bricks impart texture and a restrained touch of luxury to the small sitting room. Image credit: Summit Group

Throughout the build, Andy and Jacqui relied on an excellent relationship with their builders Summit Group.

Andy says, “They were central to us realising our aspirations, and they brought ideas to the build that we were happy to incorporate.

We would definitely work with them again, and have recommended them to other people. In fact, they’re now busy building another house on our road thanks to our recommendation.”

Two volumes

The rear exterior of the Sydenham self-build

The rear of the property features dramatic black charred larch from Shou Sugi Ban

Andy and Jacqui’s two-storey, four-bed house is made up of two contrasting cuboid forms.

A simple, white-brick block faces the street, and, at the back, a black timber box, clad in charred larch known as Shou Sugi Ban, sits over the main, open-plan living space supported by a flank wall and a pair of steel columns.

The underside of the black box is clad in oak, reflecting the oak windows and finishes internally and emphasising the idea of a lightweight floating timber box, in contrast to the weight of the masonry box at the front.

The overarching design concept of these two forms is clearly articulated and visible within the building.

The front and rear volumes are separated by a step down on the ground floor in line with the downwards slope of the site from front to rear.

The step also allows for a ceiling height of 3m in the large, open-plan living space at the rear that includes a seating area as well as the kitchen and a dining area.

Aims for the design

Landing of Sydenham self-build house

The visual story inside the house is all about art, timber, colour and geometry. Image credit: Summit Group

Andy set out to achieve three goals with his design:

  • to build practical home with flexible spaces that could adapt to suit the changing needs of his family
  • to minimises energy use by adopting Passive House principles, and renewable and smart-home technologies
  • to create a comfortable, light and airy house that embraces nature and the outdoors and contributes to health and wellbeing.

Divisible space

He has achieved all three goals very successfully.

Although the ground floor is broadly open plan, oversized, flush, pocket doors that slide in and out of the walls allow the space to be sectioned off into more private areas when family life demands it – for example, when Lucas wants to take over the small sitting room at the front of the house for online gaming – or opened up to create long sightlines through the house.

The full-height, frameless doors are painted to match the walls, creating a seamless, flush appearance when they are closed.

Green tech

Kitchen area at Sydenham self-build

The dark blue kitchen features Fenix-fronted cabinetry Image credit: Summit Group

Despite its retro-inspired looks, the house is packed with all the latest in sustainable and energy-efficiency features and smart-home tech.

Andy adopted Passive House principles, including exceptional insulation, triple glazing, and an airtight build, to minimise heat loss.

A Zehnder CAQ350 mechanical ventilation and heat recovery (MVHR) system circulates fresh, filtered and pre-warmed air through the building, while underfloor heating and an air-source heat pump provide eco-friendly warmth.

A 5kW Suntech photovoltaic array and 10kW Huawei battery and inverter generate and store renewable energy for later use.

He explains, “The orientation of the windows and overhangs also maximises the benefit of the low winter sun to warm the house while avoiding overheating in summer.”

Smart home

The kitchen/diner area in the Sydenham self-build

Custom joinery throughout the eminently liveable home was the work of Goldfinch Furniture

The house also includes a Teletask home-automation system, a fully built-in smart-home system that allows the family to control their lighting, audio, heating, blinds, remote access and more, through touch panels and a mobile app.

Lighting design

Sydenham self-build garden at night

Andy has had hours of fun devising custom smart lighting moods for the house and garden

Andy says, “The home-automation system opened up huge potential for lighting design inside and outside, and we have loved experimenting with it.

“Incorporating a range of low-energy lighting, coloured LEDs and dimmers on separate circuits, means you can create almost limitless possibilities for lighting moods throughout house and garden.

“We can programme lights to come on automatically at dusk in the house and garden, and pre-programmed settings in the living room create different lighting moods to suit everything from watching a film to reading a book.”

Gardens

Front garden at Sydenham self-build

The gravel in the Zen-garden inspired front garden allows for maximum rainwater penetration. Image credit: Summit Group

The Japandi feel of the home is reflected in its outdoor spaces.

Andy set out to achieve a seamless flow between indoor and outdoor spaces, and a central courtyard brings natural light and fresh air deep into the home, while the use of building overhangs and continuous material finishes from inside to out strengthens the visual flow between the house and garden.

Full-height oak-framed sliding doors open onto the rear terraced garden and a ‘borrowed’ view over mature trees in the neighbouring park, which suggests a countryside rather than suburban London location.

Rear garden at the Sydenham self-build

The rear garden slopes downwards and comprises of a series of stepped terraces filled with contrasting informal planting. Image credit: Summit Group

Bespoke joinery

Detail of shelving from the sitting room at Sydenham self-build

Built-in storage, such as these bookshelves and cupboards in the sitting room, helps to create a sense of solidity and mass in the building. Image credit: Summit Group

There are many other aspects of this home that could be picked out for praise. Another thing that sets it apart is the impeccable detailing.

The house is full of bespoke joinery, all crafted impeccably by south London specialists Goldfinch Furniture, and Andy’s minimalist design with a strong Mid-Century flavour has a maximum impact.

Flush, full-height doors keep lines and forms clean and simple, while clever built-in storage gives an impression of solidity to the walls.

These joinery elements were conceived at the planning stage and integrated into recesses or form full-width elements.

They serve to conceal furniture within the depth of walls, creating a feeling of solidity and keeping the interior layout simple and clutter-free.

Use of colour

The yellow 'bridge' on the landing in the Sydenham self-build

The bright yellow ‘bridge’ on the landing is a stand-out feature, both bold and playful. Image credit: Summit Group

Another masterstroke is the confident use of colour, which sets the home apart from so many white-cube homes.

The bold colours bring life, warmth, and personality, as well as accentuating the building’s form.

Andy says, “I’ve absorbed a lot of architectural magazines over the years, poured over many puritanical boxes, and even visited some to look at them adoringly.

They’re absolutely fantastic and the architects who do them are so precise, so committed. But, for me, they don’t feel like a home.

“The photographs of those pristine, clinical buildings always make it look as if no-one lives in them. I don’t know how people live lives and keep their homes looking like that.

“They’re lovely, but we decided that wasn’t what we wanted. We wanted a design ethos – but also a very liveable home.”

A coral red wall wraps around the living room and extends up to the first-floor landing visually uniting the ground and first floors. On the first floor, a bright yellow bridge element spans between the front and rear volumes.

Neither the bridge nor the staircase touches the walls, which creates a sense of separation and emphasises the journey between the two sides of the house.

Living room at Sydenham self-build

The house is full of great lighting choices: here Melt pendants by Tom Dixon in the living room and Asteria pendants by Umage in the kitchen. Image credit: Summit Group

Concrete staircase

The staircase at the Sydenham self-build

The concrete staircase was cast in situ and brings a touch of Brutalism, which is softened by the oak treads. Image credit: Summit Group

The concrete staircase was cast in-situ – think National Theatre-style timber-shuttered concrete – the light grey, timber-grain finish created by the shuttering reflects the timber cladding and finishes elsewhere in the house, while the oak stair treads contrast pleasingly with the raw-concrete finish.

House full of art

The front door and sitting room at Sydenham self-build

The extrawide iroko front door is from Urban Front

Last but by no means least, the house is crammed with contemporary art and sculptural light fittings, which bring visual stimulation and soul to the building’s simple shapes.

This house may be humbler in scale than some other self-builds, but that’s just a London thing. I adored this house. And, when I win the lottery, I’ll be asking Jacqui and Andy to source me a plot and design me a house on it.

Theirs is a family house I couldn’t have loved any more: gently redolent of the best of Modernist architecture, unshowy and modest but impeccably designed – eminently liveable, full of colour, art, and clever details conducive to family life. Bravo Team Heath! If you ever need a house-sitter, you know where I am.

See more of the house here and  @brickwoodgrey

READ MORE

SCROLL FOR MORE LIKE THIS