Church Hill Barn was designed by David Nossiter Architects, The site, situated on the Essex/Suffolk borders within the landscape immortalized by Constable was originally the home farm of the nearby estate, destroyed by fire in the 1950s. It consists of a collection of farm buildings forming a courtyard. The centerpiece of the site with views over the rural landscape is a large barn of cathedral-like proportions.
Photography by© Steve Lancefield
Cruciform in plan with a collection of smaller spaces surrounding it, the arrangement sought to provide shelter for different farming activities under a single roof. The barn complex is the legacy of the model farm movement. The clients purchased the buildings in a dilapidated condition. Having sold their own property in nearby Colchester they decided to reside in a caravan on the site during the build. David had worked on a previous project and was the natural choice of architect. Photography by© Steve Lancefield
The barn is a Listed structure and the contemporary refurbishment required lengthy agreements with the local planning authorities.

A large component of the renovations consisted of the refurbishment of the roof. Roofing slates and timber materials were salvaged from the other agricultural structures on the site that were too decayed to be usefully renovated. In order to allow the existing structure to be viewed internally but still conform to modern standards of thermal performance, the roof is a ?warm roof construction?...