South Croydon Loft Conversion
A modern loft extension that dynamically makes use of every possible space of a small end-of-terrace house on a dense South Croydon street - adding an additional bedroom, ensuite and storage room.
By locating spaces not requiring much head height such as bathrooms, storage and circulation above or below bedrooms, the floor structure of the loft conversion could be broken up like a jigsaw puzzle and raised or lowered to suit each purpose, without impacting the quality of the habitable rooms.
With an original loft head height of 1.9m and no precedents of loft extensions on the South Croydon street, it looked unlikely that an additional floor could be added. However, through intricate 3D modelling, Cherry Architects created a new loft floor structure that lowers in certain areas to slot additional accommodation above.
Clever design strategies, such as the addition large areas of glazing, add further headroom and bring daylight to the loft conversion, to create a perception of space where space is limited.
By creating a three-storey circulation space with a large rooflight at the top, light penetrates through the centre of what was originally a dark house, typical of its South Croydon location.
Accounting for every square metre, the new loft conversion spiral stair is squeezed into half of the length of the ground floor stair below, leaving room for a cosy ensuite in the other half.
Plywood joinery is beautifully crafted through the full three storeys of the circulation space to unify the old and new parts of the house – in the form of below-stair storage at ground floor, the loft and stair balustrades and to the hidden sliding doors that allow access to the storage space from the top floor stair. Plywood is further accented in the interior design within the existing parts of the South Croydon house.
