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Case studyFulham · SW6

Fulham, four new-build houses with basements

Four new houses on a plot behind the street. Each one has a basement.

Where: Fulham, SW6
The homes: Four new-build houses
Bedrooms: Two with three, two with four
Size: 1,270 to 2,460 sq ft
Below ground: One basement level each
Value band: £2.5m and above
Built: 2016 to 2018
On site: About 100 weeks

Brick and timber houses around a paved courtyard, blue sky. — Fulham · The houses around the paved courtyardCase study

i The brief

A plot behind the street. Room for four houses.

The site sat behind a row of houses, closed in by old brick walls.

One gated entrance leads in from the street.

We drew four houses around a shared courtyard.

Two have three bedrooms. Two have four.

Each house has its own garden and a parking space.

NU Projects built them as a joint venture, under one contract.

ii The design

Low on the boundary. Deep below the courtyard.

An earlier, taller design was refused at planning.

Along the boundary, they rise no higher than what stood there before.

Lightwells and glass floors carry daylight down to the basements.

The two visuals were rendered from the design in 2017. They are not photographs.

Design visual, not a photograph. Brick and timber houses around a paved courtyard. — Fulham · The courtyard, as designedDesign visual, 2017, not a photograph

Design visual, not a photograph. Front doors along the courtyard, with low planters. — Fulham · The front doors, as designedDesign visual, 2017, not a photograph

Our site plan of the four houses around a shared courtyard, with lightwells and gardens. — Fulham · Site plan, four houses and a courtyardOur drawing, design stage

Four front doors, one contract, one standard of finish.

iii On site

The walls went in first. Then the ground came out.

Steel sheet piles lined the dig on every side.

Raking props held them while the ground came out.

Then the steel was tied and the basement slab was poured.

These are our own photographs from the site, taken in June 2017.

The basement dig, walled in steel sheet piles and held by raking props. — Fulham · The dig, walled and proppedOn site, photograph

A raking steel prop across the dig, with sheet piled walls on every side. — Fulham · A raking prop across the digOn site, photograph

A worker ties a steel reinforcement mat on the floor of the dig. — Fulham · Tying steel on the dig floorOn site, photograph

Steel reinforcement laid across a basement floor, between the props. — Fulham · Steel laid for a basement slabOn site, photograph

Concrete poured over the reinforcement for a basement slab. — Fulham · Pouring the basement slabOn site, photograph

A cast basement slab inside the propped, sheet piled walls. — Fulham · The slab cast, the props still in placeOn site, photograph

iv Below ground

One floor down, lit from above.

Every house has one basement level.

In the three bedroom houses, the bedrooms sit below ground.

The living room and kitchen open onto the courtyard above.

In the largest house, the kitchen and living space sit below.

Lightwells along the front bring daylight down.

One floor below the courtyard.

Our section through one house, a basement bedroom and bathroom below the living floor. — Fulham · Section through one houseOur drawing, design stage

Two floors of a three bedroom house.

Our plans of a three bedroom house, the ground floor beside the basement. — Fulham · Ground floor and basement plansOur drawing, design stage

v The finished houses

Brick, timber and stone.

Kitchens with long stone topped islands.

A glass rooflight set into the courtyard paving.

Oiled timber doors open onto pale oak hallways.

Rear courtyard with a glass rooflight set into the paving. — Fulham · The rear courtyard and its rooflightCase study

Staircase with pale treads and lit niches in the wall. — Fulham · A staircase with lit nichesCase study

Kitchen under a long rooflight, a marble topped island and handleless units. — Fulham · A kitchen under a long rooflightCase study

Dressing room lined with dark timber shelving and lit edges. — Fulham · A dressing room in dark timberCase study

Kitchen with pale units and a long stone topped island. — Fulham · A kitchen with a stone topped islandCase study

Open plan living space with a lit ceiling coffer, the kitchen beyond. — Fulham · Open plan living under a lit ceilingCase study

Bathroom with large format tiles and a walk in shower. — Fulham · A bathroom with a walk in showerCase study

Front door in oiled timber opening onto a pale oak hallway. — Fulham · An oiled timber front door and oak hallwayCase study

vi The team

Who built it.

The studio: NU Projects, founded by Nick Jeffries
Design, cost and construction: NU Projects, under one contract

The scope New build Basements Architectural design Interior design Structural works Full fit-out Project management

Services on this jobDesign and build Basements Interior design Architecture Construction project management

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