Sheffield Passivhaus

This new dwelling is to achieve the clients dreams of self-building their own family house in a sustainable and low energy Passivhaus on the site of a former garden in the South-West of Sheffield.

With energy efficiency and low impact at the heart of the clients brief for their home, this dwelling has been designed to be as economical as possible, forming a compact 3 bedroom dwelling. The design also creates moments of delight in a full height entrance hallway bridged by a feature staircase that escalates to the loft space snug. From the snug, views over the rooftops to the hills of the Peak District can be enjoyed.

The living space to the rear of the ground floor opens up into the gardens beyond. The mature planting of the former gardens is retained where possible and a winding path leads from the house back towards a former coach house that already sits on the site as ancillary space to the main house.

Designed to meet Passivhaus criteria, the house is to be super insulated and air tight, using a pre-fabricated timber frame. An mechanical ventilation system with heat recovery will provide fresh air throughout the house and renewable technology is proposed in the provision of an air source heat pump for heating and hot water and photovoltaic panels to the roof scape.

The proposal has recently been submitted for planning approval.