Our most recent scheme: 17 new homes on the half-hectare site of the former Writtle Road Nursery in Chelmsford, Essex. Earlier proposals by a previous team, for 10 and then 13 homes, were not supported. We redesigned the site to deliver more homes while answering the planners’ concerns on layout, parking and design quality.

The homes facing Writtle Road take their cues from the nearby Crompton Works, in buff brick with red brick accents and slate roofs. Behind them, a mews of contemporary terraced houses sits along a landscaped lane, with parking tucked into a courtyard reached through a covered passage. Every home exceeds national space standards, set among new tree planting, wildflower areas and a biodiversity area. We took the scheme through to RIBA Stage 3 for the planning application, and a decision is due.