Studio Cottage, Cirencester

2025 RIBA South West & Wessex Award
RIBA South West & Wessex Project Architect of the Year John Ashton

Studio Cottage, Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Ashton Architecture and Rebecca Milton Architect for private client
Contract value: Confidential
GIA: 235m²

This project comprises a delightful, meticulous repair and adaptation of a Grade II-listed studio cottage and thatched outbuilding on the edge of the Cotswolds Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB), with highly distinctive materials, textures and forms. The original, mostly timber buildings, completed in 1932, were designed by arts and crafts architect Alfred Hoare Powell as a summer cottage and pottery-decorating studio for himself. Their current owner wanted to bring them together into a single family home, with independent accommodation for guests. 

Ashton Architecture’s design of the new elements, including the glazed link and the main stair, is well judged and finely executed. These high-quality contemporary features not only improve the property’s functionality for family living but also heighten its significance, given that they have their own architectural integrity which contributes to the dwelling’s history.

The approach and surrounding landscaped garden setting have been carefully restored and adapted, including bold new concrete and gravel hard landscape elements adjacent to the existing buildings, which enhance their overall setting.

Elevated by the clever use of some low-cost materials, the separate new outbuilding is carefully located away from the existing buildings, screened by mature trees and shrubs. It contains high-quality ancillary spaces – a guest bedroom with kitchen/living room, a home office, a garage and storerooms – helping to minimise impacts on the listed buildings while providing this additional accommodation.

The architectural expression is a very successful arrangement of pitched-roofed volumes, detailed in contrasting open-jointed Cotswold stone and galvanised corrugated sheet cladding. These are articulated with finely made galvanised doors and windows, and distinctive timber-clad sliding doors with their mechanisms left visible. 

The jury’s visit was accompanied by the contractor as well as the architects, adding to the sense that this was a genuine team effort. Project architect John Ashton’s passion and commitment to the project’s success were palpable, as were his close understanding of the client’s needs and the clarity of his strategy to unify the buildings.

Discovery and uncovering of the existing building led to complexities that were well handled by client, architect and contractor together, along with local craftspeople bringing their knowledge and skills to the project.

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RIBA Regional Awards 2025 sponsored by Autodesk, EH Smith, Equitone and Velux