Redundant Care Home remodeled and converted into 12 No 2, 3 & 4 Bedroom Town Houses.  Utilising the existing floor areas, the former care home was remodeled to accommodate 12 new spacious properties, the single-story structures linking the three main buildings were demolished, and externally a new render finish with modern anthracite grey windows and doors gave a crisp clean new feel to a re-utilised property.

DJK Architectural Design Services worked with the client from the pre-purchase stage on this project.  We helped the client assess and appraise a number of potential properties before finding a suitable property that met his exact specifications.  The conversion and restoration were able to be carried out under permitted development, saving a full planning application.  The large 4 bedroomed maisonette flat situated over Shops at ground floor level was converted into a 6 bedroom dwelling to cater for assisted living, utilising the space available and giving thought to the most cost effective method of construction the client had a property that served his original brief.

Many older properties feature good size living rooms and bedrooms, however, the kitchens tend to be slightly smaller, often with additional pantries, larders, and stores adjacent.  For this project, the client had two clear wishes. 1) A larger kitchen/living area giving direct access to the rear garden, and 2) remodel the flat roof over the garage and office.  Removing the rear wall to the existing kitchen and providing a new vaulted roof extension the client was given a 40m sq spacious footprint.  The new roof then wrapped around the side of the building replacing the existing garage roof.  A high-performance specification and careful design has meant the client has the space they always wanted within in the home.

The client already owned a number of HMO properties in the area, all converted from existing houses, with this property an existing office building, planning was required to convert it into an 8 bedroom HMO.  The main requirement for this conversion was to maintain good sized rooms, with a high specification finish to suit his tenant's needs.  The final solution gave the client everything he required with minimal wasted space left within the property.  As time constraints were placed on this project to receive the planning approval and ultimately the purchase, DJK Architectural Services pulled out all stops to turn this project around in a matter of weeks.

The client purchased a run-down property in South Yorkshire that he wanted to modernise and extend for his family home.  Built originally as an agricultural building before being converted to a dwelling some years after, the property was in a poor condition.  The client required additional living space in the form of a sunroom, and alterations and extensions to annex buildings to serve as a guest suite whilst the rest of the existing property required complete refurbishment including new windows, render finish, and new roof covering.

This property was purchased with an existing granted planning permission in place.  The client approached DJK Architectural Design Services to look at maximising the existing proposals of 15 No 1 bedroom apartments and 7 No 2 bedroom apartments.  The newly formed attic space was incorporated into the scheme forming an additional floor, and with alterations, to the remaining floor layouts, the client had 22 No spacious 2 bedroom apartments of which 10 were duplex style with living rooms and kitchens within the attics.  This slight alteration and use of space increased the GDV (gross development value) significantly.

Nestled within the Northumberland National Parks the garden wing of a grade II listed property was purchased by the client at auction.  The existing property consisted of 22 en-suite bedrooms, a training suite and a whole floor of unused space.  Working with the local planning department, conservation officers and local groups, planning permission was applied for and granted for the conversion of the property into 16No 1 & 2 bedroomed holiday apartments and full renovation of the listed conservatory.

An opportunity arose for the client to purchase a 2000m sq Grade II listed hotel adjoining a property under their current ownership.  DJK Architectural Design Services was employed to carry out a dimensional survey, incorporating the new information with that of their current property and assisting with an appraisal for the proposed renovation works.

DJK Architectural Design Services were recommended by the Contractor for the Design and Working Drawings for this Double Garage.  The Floor Plan had to be designed to work with the shape of the existing boundaries retaining as much Garden space as possible, whilst still providing the required amount of floor space internally.

A popular extension style for additional ground floor space is the single storey rear extension, often incorporating a larger kitchen/living space.  For this project, the client required a kitchen space suitable for entertaining guests, especially during the summer months.  A direct link was required to the south-facing large garden and patios.  A wrap-around extension was proposed utilising the unused space to the side of the property, whilst remodeling the external elevations to the existing sunroom to suit the client's needs.

A traditional detached stone-built dwelling located just on the edge of the Yorkshire Dales National Park.  The client commissioned DJK Architectural Design Services to redesign and extend the ground floor ancillary accommodation.  With a confined area to work with we successfully found a solution to give the client the space required whilst keeping the extension in keeping with the original property.

Originally 2 semi-detached dwellings, this property had last been combined and used as offices and storage.  Due to properties location and lack of amenity space the client wished to separate the properties to its original semi-detached style and convert them both into 5 Bedroom HMO's (House of Multiple Occupation).  Due to the limited space within the properties great care was taken to ensure that all areas met with the local authorities guidance on HMO design as well as meeting all requirements for successful planning and building control approvals.

This property had an integral double garage which the client did not require all of the space, but wished for an additional habitable room.  To save extending the existing buildings footprint DJK Architectural Design Services were commissioned to convert half of this existing double garage into additional living space along with further internal alteration works.  Garage conversions can often be a cost-effective way of increasing your living space without the need to eating into your external spaces.

A small rear extension extending the existing living space and connecting to the existing projecting kitchen.  

The client wished to replace their existing conservatory with a more suitable space to be used as a dining area.  This cost-effective solution utilised the gable wall of the existing garage, infilling a space that was otherwise unused.

A Grade II Listed property built in the early 1800s as a stately home, before being used as a private school, then by the British army, finally it became council offices in the 1920s.  Over the property's long history it had undergone a number of extensions and alterations resulting in the loss of many original features.  In 2016 works started to convert the Property into a mixture of Licensed HMO (house of multiple occupation) Units, Apartments, Studios (totaling 64 Bedrooms) & a 300m sq Shop.  Care was taken to retain and restore the remaining existing heritage features whilst improving the properties of fire safety, sound, and thermal performance.

DJK Architectural Design Services were recommended by a previous client for this conversion project.  The property was originally built as a pair of semi-detached 2 up 2 down houses, later being converted into one property with a commercial unit to the ground floor, with a flat above.  In more recent years it had been used as one large house.  The client wished to split the property back into 2 separate units, and use them both as HMOs (house of multiple occupation).  With careful planning, the layouts complied with the guidance required and planing and building control approvals were granted.

Over the last 5 years, DJK Architectural Design Services have worked with a number of developers and investors appraising potential projects, with the purchasing of the properties being speculative DJK Architectural Design Services offer a cost-effective analysis of the existing property and its potential to meet the client's requirements.  Subject to the material provided to work from, sketch plans are produced with a report highlighting the potential accommodation enabling the client to make a decision whether the project is worth pursuing further.

DJK Architectural Design Services offer their services to other architectural practises, engineers and consultants, this includes full dimensional surveys, existing drawings, sketch plans, and drawings for planning and building control submissions.  This service is ideal if your company has a sudden influx of work, you have projects that require an urgent turnaround, or the distance for you to carry out a full survey is not viable.  DJK Architectural Design Services can offer assistance tailored to suit your needs.

Prior to DJK Architectural Design Services, Damien served a local architectural practice for 18 years, where he worked on a wide range of projects from small extensions, alterations, and conservatories, through conversions, new build single homes, and offices, to housing developments, industrial buildings, and petrol stations.  Carrying out surveying and measuring duties, producing existing drawings, sketch plans, proposals, working drawings, and technical details, as well as liaising with the client, design team, consultants and the authorities.