Wildfowl Cottage

RESEARCH BACKGROUND: The Wildfowl Cottage project is an extension to a former derelict waterside inn. It saves a listed house and provides an innovative response to flood risk, establishing a new model for this topical challenge. It was awarded the 2014 RIBA East Small Project Award and the RIBA Regional Award. RESEARCH CONTRIBUTION: Designed to complement the rescue of a derelict former waterside inn, the new room provides a refuge above the 100-year flood level. Through an exceptionally long gestation, with prolonged exchange with the planning and conservation authority, a single room has been created which responds carefully to the rich contexts of the listed house and the remarkable surrounding landscape. It rejects the notion that conservation work should be bland and bloodless. According to RIBA Awards, 'It's seldom that a panic room is considered a thing of beauty, but ... this small addition achieves the feat consummately.' This project draws on Holbrook's ongoing design research in developing approaches to strategic thinking that explores the dynamic between architecture and the scale of infrastructure and landscape, particularly within conservation, environmental sustainability and regeneration projects. RESEARCH SIGNIFICANCE: The project's significance is evidenced through its two RIBA awards. Championing the best architecture in the UK and around the world, RIBA Awards are the most rigorously judged awards for architectural excellence in the UK. The project also featured extensively in Architecture.com, Architects' Journal and Dezeen magazine.